Watching Her Fall
by LadyLetters
Summary: Edward & Bella have been married for ten years but are growing apart. Edward engages Jacob, master craftsman and hottie, to help pull off an audacious plan to give Bella the time of her life whilst indulging his own voyeuristic fantasies. However it is not long before his misguided plan backfires with devastating consequences. AU (human), Lemon
1. Chapter 1

**WARNING: This story contains a pretty intense love triangle and some non canon pairings that may be hard reading for the Twilight purists among you. There is an HEA but I'm not going to spoil it - you'll just need to read all the way through to find out what happens!**

 **Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended**

* * *

"Edward?" A tentative hand grazed his naked thigh, the heat of the touch almost shocking against the cool of the expensive sheets. He steeled himself in an effort not to move and concentrated on breathing evenly.

"Edward?" She was on her side now, rustling into a closer position under the sheets. The hot hand was more confident, running up his thigh towards his boxer shorts. He squeezed his eyes tight shut, even though the room was pitch black, and forced his breathing deeper.

A small involuntarily sigh left her mouth as the hand retreated and she sank softly back into the plush pillows. The sigh was as hurtful to him as a knife to the heart but he carried on breathing heavily, unsure how to end the charade without hurting her. Eventually her breathing slackened into genuine sleep. He pulled the duvet back and slipped silently out of bed then padded quietly along the corridor and into his study, closing the door silently behind him.

* * *

"Bye Mum! Bye Dad!" Bella wasn't sure whether to be happy that her ten year old daughter was confident enough to run into summer camp with barely a second glance or sad that she was growing up and didn't need her parents any more. She pasted a smile onto her face and waved a little too goofily at the head of blonde curls bobbing through the crowd as she ran off to find her friends. As Renesmee disappeared out of sight her waving faltered and her hand, suddenly redundant, fell limply to her side. Edward took her hand in his and squeezed. She looked up at him and saw that he too was close to tears, his clear blue eyes cloudy, the corners of his mouth turned down. She squeezed his hand back and they clung to each other, a solid rock in the stream of parents and children passing by.

"I can't believe she's ten years old," said Edward, as he urged the high powered Jaguar quietly down the mountain lanes back to Seattle. It was June and the trees were covered in broad green leaves, letting only dappled shafts of sunlight through to the road that snaked through the canopy below.

"I know." Bella managed a weak smile in response. "It seems like only yesterday that I was giving birth to her."

"It doesn't feel like that long that Charlie was ready to castrate me!"

"Well," said Bella, a genuine smile breaking across her face at the memory, "you did get his only daughter knocked up at eighteen."

"It worked out in the end though," he said, taking her hand and pulling it to his lap, "didn't it?"

"Yes, of course it did." To Edward her voice sounded hollow. As she gently pulled her hand away and returned to staring out of the window he took his eyes off the road for a moment to regard her. His stomach lurched for a brief moment as he discovered anew the long trim frame punctuated by curves in all the right places and the dark eyes fringed with long dark lashes that peeked out from under dark glossy bangs. Bella was undoubtedly still a beautiful woman. As he turned his eyes back to concentrate on the road he couldn't help but feel that the gulf between them was wider than just the short distance between their hands.

* * *

"Honey," began Edward, as they pulled onto the gravel driveway that led to their beautiful home.

"I know," Bella cut him off, "you have to work." She barely looked at him as she stepped out of the car. "Remember we're due at Jasper and Alice's for drinks tonight at eight."

"Drinks?" his brow furrowed as he tried to remember what had been arranged. Suddenly her gaze was full on him, her dark eyes narrowed.

"Yes, drinks." She looked at him, clearly incensed by his blank expression. "I told you weeks ago. I remember it specifically because you said that it was stupid that somebody would have drinks to show off their new extension." He could feel his expression soften. That did sound like the kind of thing that he would say but he genuinely couldn't remember.

"Just be ready for eight." She slammed the door of the car, making him wince despite the expensive soundproofing. He killed the engine and sat for a moment, staring at their picture perfect home and wondering what had happened to put such distance between them.

Upon entering the house he could hear Bella moving around in the kitchen but he walked straight past, seeking the stairway and the sanctuary of his study. The rest of the house was minimalist, decorated in soothing neutrals, but his study was painted dark grey and cluttered with bits and pieces that Bella didn't let him display in the rest of the house. A motorcycle helmet from a long forgotten hobby, a signed photograph of his favourite racing driver, an aerial picture of the latest factory that Cullen Industries had built. On one wall a slightly squint corkboard still held gaudy finger paintings and Father's Day cards that Renesmee had made for him that he couldn't bear to throw out. The dark mahogany desk was cluttered with two laptops and piles of paper. Some was in folders, some in random piles. He opened one of the laptops, logged into his e-mails and didn't raise his head for nearly two hours until his mobile phone rang.

"Cullen."

"Edward, it's me."

"Hi, Jessica, what's going on?"

"Well, guess what your lovely PR lady has done for you now?"

"What?" He couldn't help but smile, rubbing his eyes as he relaxed back for a moment in the deep desk chair to take the call. Jessica was as much a force to be reckoned with over the phone as she was in real life, a petite blonde bundle of energy.

"I've only gone and got you a meeting with Senator Williams."

"No!" His eyes widened. "We've been trying to talk to him about growth funding all year."

"I know, right?" She was clearly pleased with herself. "And I've managed to get the meeting set up."

"Jessica..." He was still almost speechless. "If this comes off..."

"Jobs and glory!" Her voice softened. "I know how much it means to you to do something positive for the area you grew up in."

"If he supports the factory application it's going to mean hard work for the whole management team," he cautioned.

"Edward!" She yelled at him, making him move the phone a couple of inches away from his ear to prevent permanent damage. "Revitalising Greenburgh is the coolest idea ever! We're all totally bought into getting this new factory built, no matter how long it takes." He found himself smiling at her enthusiasm. Every time that he thought something would be too hard she was there to support and encourage him. Sometimes in the past he had felt that he was ploughing this furrow alone yet out of the darkness she had arrived to support him.

"Right, Jess, I've got to go. I've got a contract to look over before I go out to some stupid drinks party." She laughed and they said their goodbyes.

"Well," said a voice behind him. He whirled around in his office chair to see Bella standing in the doorway, arms crossed. "I'm glad to see that you've not forgotten." She slammed the door shut. He rose for a moment, intending to follow her and smooth things out, but the slam of the bathroom door further down the hallway followed by the sound of the water being turned on full underlined that their conversation was over. He sank back into the chair and after a moment hunched back over his laptop.

* * *

Bella lay in the warm water stiff as a board. The rose scented water was a perfect temperature. Outside the sun was starting to go down and the full length frosted window that the bathtub was set in front of diffused the light to a calm, almost ethereal glow. Yet she was so angry with Edward that her body simply wouldn't relax. Angry that he spent so much time working on Cullen Industries. Angry at the flirtatious manner in which he was chatting to Jessica over the phone. Angry that he spent more time on factories and widgets than he did with her.

As the anger finally started to dissipate it was replaced with something else, something deeper and more twisted. She tried to hold onto the anger but as always it was simply a shield, heavy and protective but tiring to keep in place. Edward was a good man. A family man. They hadn't always had money, they were living hand to mouth when Renesmee was born and Bella had given up her place at college. They had worked together at the start, working all hours to set up the business from the garage of a rented house. When Renesmee was born and the business started to take off Edward rented some premises and continued working to build the business. She knew that she should be grateful. She knew that the beautiful house and the cars and the holidays that they enjoyed were because of the business. The private school that was helping Renesmee flourish was affordable only because of the income from the business. Yet she couldn't help but yearn for the days when they spent their days and nights together, working their fingers to the bone to fill those first early orders. The work was hard but they had each other, laughing, eating Ramen Noodles, drinking endless cups of coffee. She felt so far removed from him now. It wasn't just the time that he was spending at work, they were growing apart physically as well. He had barely touched her in months and the frustration was growing.

Giving in to the pent up desire she snaked a hand between her legs, tracing a finger down to her hot centre. She spread herself wide as she imagined a fair head between her legs. Edward's. Her breath caught in her throat as she imagined him spreading her wide, lapping her clitoris, pushing his tongue into her. Her fingers moved faster as she remembered how he would lick her from behind, lapping enthusiastically, spreading her bottom for an exploratory lick as his deft fingers rubbed her swollen clitoris and pushed into her slick pussy. Her body convulsed, waves of pleasure making her rigid then weak again. In her imagination the head rose from between her legs and smiled a lascivious smile, full of filth and promise. But it wasn't Edwards head. It was another face, unclear and male,that made her stomach twist and turn. As soon as the thought entered her head she sat up, sloshing water over the sides of the bath with the force of her movement, covering her suddenly exposed breasts with crossed arms and looking around furtively as if Edward would somehow be able to sense that she had been masturbating to the image of a man that was not him. The orgasm faded almost immediately, meagre contribution towards a dissatisfaction that had been building for months. She stepped out of the water and wrapped herself in a white fluffy towel, steeling herself to paint on a face and step out into the world armoured again.

* * *

"Edward! Bella! I'm so glad you could make it." Alice, despite being heavily pregnant, hugged each of them tightly in turn. She was glowing, her dark bob thick lustrous and her fair skin almost luminous against the deep burgundy empire line dress.

"Sis," said Edward gruffly, slipping past the ladies to where Jasper and a couple of his friends were already drinking beer in a small clique.

"You look well," observed Bella.

"I look like a whale," said Alice with a slightly dismayed twist of the face.

"Not at all," said Bella, "the bump is big but the rest of you is still really neat."

"Thanks," her smile was grateful, her hands unconsciously smoothing the heavy fabric of the desk over the bump. "Jasper tells me I'm sexy but when I'm sitting in pyjamas with swollen ankles and spots it's really hard to believe him." She ushered Bella in and shut the door behind, handing her a full glass of champagne, the last one left on a round silver tray.

The men continued to talk sport and cars while Alice's other friends chatted in the sizeable kitchen. As the last to arrive Alice treated Bella to a personal tour of the two story extension that had doubled the floor space of their house, chatting constantly as she pointed out where space had been created and architectural features preserved. The craftsmanship was top notch, from the bespoke wooden kitchen cabinets to the ornate wooden balustrade. Bella told Alice as much.

"It's Jacob," she gushed. Bella raised an eyebrow in question. "The contractor," she continued. "He's a jack of all trades. He led the team that built the extension and he's a master carpenter to trade so he did most of the architectural flourishes himself. Plus," she leaned into Bella conspirationally, "he is absolutely gorgeous!" Bella smiled back, polite but somewhat intrigued. "He's definitely made things more interesting around here for the last few months."

"So," replied Bella, scanning the room and quickly realising that she knew everybody in it, "will Jacob the master carpenter be coming here tonight?" Right on cue the doorbell went again and they both giggled nervously, like schoolgirls caught talking about their latest crusi.

"That is probably him," said Alice, glancing at her watch then looking back at Bella with a lascivious wink before checking her lipstick in the mirror and opening the door.

"Jacob!" she squealed, "you shouldn't have!" She grabbed a bottle of champagne that had been offered to her from behind the heavy wooden door and placed it immediately behind her on the side table before launching herself at the person hidden behind the door for what appeared to be a prolonged hug. Finally the door closed and Jacob walked into the room.

"Jacob," said Alice, steering him by the elbow towards her sister in law. Suddenly nervous, Bella swallowed the remaining half glass of champagne in two unladylike gulps. "This is my sister in law, Bella."

"Hi," Jacob's smile of greeting was dazzling, rows of perfect teeth surrounded by bee-stung lips with a deep cupids bow. "It's really nice to meet you." He put out his hand to greet her. Alice, seeing that she still had the champagne flute in her hand, grabbed it from her and trotted off in the direction of the kitchen to obtain a refill for her guest. With the glass gone Bella put her own hand into his offered one. His grip was firm, warm and callused but as she looked up at him to return his smile she realised the full scale of the body it was attached to. Jacob was at least a head taller than her and broad. He was wearing a white shirt, rolled up to the elbows to reveal muscular forearms and a very nice watch with a large square face and a thick brown strap. The shirt was slim fitting and tucked into dark denim jeans, showing off his broad shoulders and chest and flat stomach. She longed to look lower but couldn't pull her eyes away from his face. Dark, amused eyes were framed by wayward black hair and a speckling of stubble was clearly visible on the firm jaw.

Blushing, she realised that she had not let go of his hand nor replied to him.

"Nice to meet you too Jacob," she said, snatching her hand away as quickly and discreetly as she could. Alice spared her further embarrassment by arriving at that precise moment with a full glass of champagne for Bella and a fresh one for Jacob.

"Jacob is a wonder with wood," she trilled, batting her eyelids.

"Alice," he replied, grinning,"I'm not that good with wood." He winked at Bella, the double entendre not lost on her or the maniacally cackling Alice. "Besides," he continued in a more serious note as her laughter subsided, "it was a pleasure working on this place and an amazing experience to work with somebody so open to new ideas." Alice cackled again in response, off in her own little world. Jacob caught Bella's eye and raised a single eyebrow. She smiled back at him, enjoying their complicity and the chance to look at him again. Yet as Alice's laugh finally tailed off a finger of doubt penetrated her stomach. Was she looking at him too long? Could he tell that she was attracted to him? Quickly, she dropped her gaze back to the champagne glass in her hand.

"Jacob!" Jasper shouted at him from across the room.

"Ladies," he said, with a tip of his head, excusing himself to join the men. Bella hadn't realised how tense she had been until he walked away. Surreptitiously she turned her body to watch him walk. Her arm touched Alice's as she had angled her body in a mirror to Bella's to do the same. Their eyes met and they both suppressed a giggle.

"Poetry in motion," muttered Alice. Bella could only sigh in response at the long, lean thighs and tight bottom encased in denim, the slim waist a contrast to the breadth of his shoulders. He must have only been a couple of years younger than most of the other men but in his dark jeans and white shirt he looked modern and fresh, a stark contrast to the khakis and pastel or striped polo shirts sported by Edward, Jasper and their friends. "When did our husbands become middle aged?" asked Alice with yet another sigh. Bella shrugged her shoulders in response, still watching Jacob moving across the room. "Cookie cutter husbands."

Bella could see where she was coming from. The small group of men wore similar bland clothes, the type of classic casuals that would not look out of place on the golf course or at the country club and she knew that outside were parked similar expensive but bland cars. Their houses were all similarly bland, expensively furnished but neutral. Jacob was like a splash of darkness in a desert of neutrals.

"You should see him with his top off," whispered Alice. "I mean, Jasper goes to the gym so he's no slouch in the fitness department but Jacob is seriously ripped." Bella turned to her sister in law to encourage her to continue, unable to suppress the smile that was bubbling up in response to that thought. "The kind of ripped that a man gets from working with his hands." They both fell into silence again, contemplating exactly what a skilled man like that could do with his hands.

* * *

"That's the contractor," said Jasper, motioning to a tall dark man that had just entered the room. Alice introduced him to Bella and he could see from the way that she gazed up at him and the flush that was spreading across her cheeks that she was attracted to him. She looked beautiful tonight, simply but elegantly dressed in a daisy print dress, cinched at the waist with a sunflower yellow belt and completed with matching yellow shoes and handbag. Yellow was a hard colour to wear but her dark hair and eyes were strong enough to complement rather than be swamped by the bright slashes. He had met Bella when she was sixteen and sometimes he forgot that they were both still only twenty eight. Twelve years together and a ten year old daughter and Bella wasn't middle-aged. Hell, she wasn't even in her prime yet.

"Jacob!" shouted Jasper. Jacob acknowledged him and excused himself from the ladies. "I thought that I had better save him from Alice," said Jasper to Edward in a low voice, "I don't know if it's baby brain or what but Alice turns into a gibbering mess when he's around." It was with dismay that Edward noticed the way that both Alice and Bella angled themselves to watch Jacob's progression across the room. He was still watching when Jasper made the introduction.

"Jacob, this is my brother in law, Edward." Finally wrenching his gaze from Bella he smiled politely at Jacob and took his outstretched hand. Jacob was huge, with callused hands that made Edward want to pull his own away so that the other man couldn't tell that they were soft from years spent behind a desk. Unconsciously he pulled himself straighter, up to his full six foot height, yet Jacob was still the larger of the two men.

"Nice to meet you Jacob," replied Edward with a tight smile. "The quality of work here is quite astounding."

"Thanks," said Jacob, running his hands through his hair in a self deprecating way that made Edward warm to him more despite the instinct to hate this competitor for his wife's affections. "It was a pleasure to work with Jasper and Alice. They knew what they wanted but stayed open to new ideas."

"He's great with the ladies," butted in Jasper. Jacob coloured slightly and opened his mouth to protest but Jasper continued. "He talked Alice out of some of her crazier decorating ideas. Saved me telling her and it ending up in a blazing row."

"I aim to please," said Jacob, lifting his glass in toast and finishing off the champagne.

"Beer?" said Jasper, looking between Jacob and Edward. They both nodded and Jasper walked off towards the kitchen. Glancing at his wife Edward couldn't help but notice that she had glanced across the room at Jacob again.

She deserves better than me, he thought, she deserves a man who desires her, a man who doesn't pretend to be asleep at night, who doesn't sneak out of the marital bed to spend time alone. An idea began to form in his mind, a way that he could let her cut loose whilst fulfilling some of his own unspoken desires. And that plan was going to involve Jacob.

"Jacob," he said, turning his attention to the other man. "I've got a cabin that needs renovating."

"Really?" His interest was piqued, "whereabouts?"

"In the Cascade Mountains," replied Edward, "really off the beaten track. I bought it for Bella's thirtieth birthday in eighteen months but I would really like to get the renovations finished by the end of the summer."

"That sounds achievable," said Jacob, accepting a cold Miller from Jasper, who passed another cold bottle to Edward. Edward took a deep swig.

"Why don't you come around tomorrow," he suggested, "I'll show you the plans and we can have a chat about it."

"Sounds great," replied Jacob. He handed his bottle to Jasper a second and pulled a business card from a worn brown leather wallet. "Here's my number." Edward took another deep swig of his own drink, liquid courage for the audacious plan forming in his head.


	2. Chapter 2

"You want me to what?" said Jacob, mouth open trying to understand what the other man was saying.

"I want you to seduce my wife," said Edward. He took a sip of his espresso and whilst his heart was beating faster than normal under his pin striped shirt he kept his hand steady as if Jacob and himself were sitting in his living room talking about everyday subjects such as business or sports. "I want to send her up to the cabin to oversee renovations." He was repeating his request with the level of patience and calm with which a teacher may have explained a particularly complex maths equation. "I want you to stay up there with her and seduce her."

"But, why?" burst out Jacob. Edward felt an absurd burst of pleasure that he had made Jacob uncomfortable. It was a small victory, a clawing back of dignity. "Don't you love her?" His face immediately froze, aware of what he had implied to Edward.

"Of course I love her," said Edward coldly, placing the empty espresso cup and coffee down on the coffee table in front of him and leaning in towards Jacob. "I love her more than anything in the universe which is precisely why I am doing this." Jacob eyed the other man cautiously, not quite sure yet if Edward was serious. "Bella and I met when she was sixteen. I was her first lover and she fell pregnant when she was eighteen." Jacob nodded, encouraging him to continue. "We've not been as active, ahem," he cleared his throat, "sexually, recently as we used to be." He dropped his eyes, unable to look at Jacob. "My fault, more than hers." Jacob didn't move, seemingly aware of how difficult this was for Edward to admit. "I want her to have some fun. A summer fling while Renesmee is at summer camp and I'm still in Seattle working on a big deal."

"What makes you think that I'm the man for the job?"

"I saw the way she looked at you," said Edward, slightly bitterly. "The flush in her cheeks, the wideness of her eyes, the way her gaze followed you across the room." It was Jacob's turn to look away strategically now. Although it was the truth it wasn't a comfortable topic to be talking about with the husband of the lady in question. "Don't you think she's attractive?"

"Hell, yeah!" interjected Jacob, a little too quickly. "She's smoking hot. But elegant with it," he continued quickly under Edward's look. His eyes narrowed. "What's in it for you?"

"I like to watch," replied Edward without inflection, although his stomach tightened at the thought of seeing this man seduce his beautiful wife. "Your first job will be to set up webcams at strategic points in the house."

"But..." Jacob clearly wasn't too sure about the idea of being watched.

"I'll pay triple," said Edward before he could object. Jacob's mouth dropped, clearly not quite believing the deal in front of him. "Plus I'll get the project into one of the glossy magazines."

"You can do that?"

"I can't," said Edward, with a wry smile. "Jessica, my head of PR can do it." He sighed. "I can't quite believe it at times but people seem to be remarkably interested in the life and style of the richest people in Seattle. If I am redesigning a cabin then Jessica can get the story into one of them. Maybe even the front cover."

"In that case, where do I sign," said Jacob, grinning.

* * *

Bella was enjoying the drive out to Cullen's Cabin, the imaginative name of Edward's latest purchase. She had ignored the stable of luxurious cars and picked up an older model Miata that she had owned for years. She loved driving a stickshift and the feeling of the wind in her hair as she powered up the steep hills. Soon the towns and cities had petered out on the flatlands behind her and she was climbing through the mountains. She almost missed the turnoff for their cabin but a thoughtful person had tied a yellow ribbon around the tree by way of reminder.

The track was rough and single track with grass growing in the centre indicating just how few people had used it in recent times. She could navigate it carefully in June in the flighty little rear wheel drive Miata but when the winter came they would definitely need a four by four to navigate it. She drove carefully as the trees closed in on the road until it was almost a tunnel. At her slow speed it seemed like forever until a pool of sunlight became visible ahead. The sudden drive into the sunlight almost blinded her as a clearing opened up suddenly in front of her. She pushed hard on the brakes and skidded to a halt, letting her eyes adjust to the scene in front of her.

The clearing was around half an acre, surrounded by close knit evergreens. It was steep, the wooden A framed cabin set into the hillside, the front half supported by strong wooden beams that created a parking area underneath. But the view! It was so beautiful that she jumped out of the car, leaving it running with the keys in the ignition to greedily drink it in. She hadn't realised how far she had climbed until she saw the countryside laid out in front of her in glorious summer technicolour. It was quite spectacular.

"Amazing, isn't it?" came a male voice from behind her. She stiffened and nodded, having forgotten in her awe that she was going to have to share this space. Heavy steps crunched closer. "I'm not sure how your husband found this place, given that it's been abandoned for years, but it is truly the best located cabin that I've ever seen." He stopped beside her to take in the view and she looked up at him, a silhouette against the midday sun.

"It's spectacular," she couldn't help but smile. "What's he got you doing here?" Jacob grinned back at her and his smile shined even with the sun behind him. As her eyes grew used to the sunlight she noticed that he was dressed for work in faded denim jeans, steel toe capped boots and a black wife beater that showed off his muscular arms and an expanse of broad, toned chest. A circular shaped dark tattoo covered the top of one arm.

"I'll show you." He pointed at the idling car. "Why don't I take your luggage to the RV and you can park your car up under the house beside mine?" She nodded. He popped the trunk and picked up the two soft matching bags that maximised the tiny boot space as if they were as light as a feather. She jumped back into the drivers seat of the little silver car and urged it up the last few metres of the road and under the house, pulling it up next to a red Ford F-150. She had seen it at Alice's party and assumed that it must have been Jacob's, a raw, unhewn jewel of a car beside the dark luxurious models lining the rest of the driveway. Up close it was massive, dwarfing her Miata. There was a locked box in the back that she assumed had tools in it. Huge knobbly tyres and a distinctive pattern of splattered mud thrown up by the wheels confirmed that this was a working vehicle, not a pretty toy. Larger tree trunks and planks crowded the space underneath the house, materials for the renovation she assumed. With the roof of the convertible safely back in place she made her way to the house, stopping to stroke the bonnet of the huge pick up truck for a moment.

Jacob was professionalism itself as he showed her around the cabin for the first time pointing out the cladding that he would be replacing, the wall that he would be replacing with modern glazed windows to make the most of the scenery and the bare room where he would be fitting a bespoke kitchen that would be sympathetic to the rustic interior. He showed her around upstairs where the master bedroom and en-suite bathroom had already been overhauled in the first week that he had been on site.

"Wow," she breathed, taking in the huge wooden four poster bed made of rustic logs. It looked spectacular already with the plain white sheets upon it, rumpled from where Jacob had been sleeping. He remained professional and courteous but they both kept one wary eye on it as he showed her the remaining features of the room. She gasped involuntarily as they entered the en-suite. The full size window was clearly brand new as it still had protective film across it yet she could see from the light flooding through that the view would be fabulous when unobscured. A huge claw footed bathtub was placed directly in front of the window, pipes rising as if by magic from the floor to fill it. The back wall of the room was taken up by a walk through shower, open at both ends. The clear acrylic structure meant that the log wall behind the shower was the over-riding feature, a fact which kept it both rustic and entirely modern at the same time. A massive rainfall showerhead dominated the open space, echoed in shape by a deer antler chandelier, a modern twist on a traditional design which pulled the whole room together.

"It's beautiful," she cried, running a hand along the shiny surface of the bathtub. "How have you managed to do this in a week?" He smiled, pleased at the compliment.

"Well, there's not a whole lot to do around here on an evening so I've pretty much been working around the clock. Plus," he continued, "given that you'll be staying in the RV I thought I'd better make sure that there was somewhere comfortable for me to stay too." The thought of the sleeping arrangements pulled her thoughts back to Jacob and his proximity. "I would have given you the bedroom," he interrupted apologetically, "but the rest of the house is a wreck and I'll be working at all hours so you'll be better off in the RV."

"What do you need me to do?" she replied, brisk and attempting to be businesslike.

"Well," said Jacob, fiddling with his tool belt. "Your husband thought that work would move quicker if you were on hand to make any day to day decisions about fixtures and fittings or decoration." She looked at him, feeling something unsaid in the air. "He wanted the renovation finished by the end of the summer and at this short notice I can't get any help. I mean, the plumbers and electricians will come up for the day for various ad hoc jobs but it will just be me for the majority of the time. He thought that you wouldn't mind keeping provisions topped up and maybe rustling up some food to keep me going."

It didn't quite explain why Edward had been so insistent that she come up here. She had a sneaking suspicion that he wanted an excuse to spend some time alone with Jessica but there was nothing that she could do to prove it. She tried to put the suspected infidelity out of her mind, focusing on the prospect of a few weeks of soaking up the sun, reading novels on her kindle and taking long walks in the woods. The part that she couldn't admit to herself was how much she was looking forward to spending time with Jacob.

"Well," she said brightly, "shall I pop into town for some provisions then?"

"Sounds great," he said with a grin. "I've been living on baked beans and sausages for the last week so I'm looking forward to some real food."

"Real food I can do," she replied, turning to leave.

"Wait," he said, and she turned around in the doorway to face him, "take my car." He threw the keys to her and she caught them.

"But I've got the Miata," she protested with a frown.

"You could kill yourself in that thing on these mountain roads, I'd feel better if you took the pick-up." She must have looked worried as he immediately urged her not to worry. "It's automatic and four wheel drive. You'll be much safer. And," he smiled in an encouraging manner, "you'll have far more trunk space for provisions."

"That's true," she said, slipping the keys into her handbag. "More room for beer?"

* * *

"That was delicious," declared Jacob, scraping his dinner plate loudly to get the last morsels of sauce onto his fork. They were sat around the tiny dining table in the RV. Jacob was wearing soft jeans, flip flops and a clean white T-shirt, his dark hair still wet from the recent shower.

"Hey," cautioned Bella, "you'll take the pattern off if you're not careful!"

"You're a wonder," he said, putting the plate back onto the table and setting his silverware down carefully into it. "Pork chops and mashed potatoes are like heaven after the rubbish I've been eating."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it," she said, draining the last of the crisp white Chablis from her glass. Immediately Jacob filled her glass and his own again, finishing the bottle. "There's dessert too."

"Dessert?" His eyes lit up and he watched eagerly as she took individual panna cotta moulds from the fridge and turned them out onto plates. "You shouldn't have gone to so much effort."

"I enjoyed it," she said. At first she was just saying it because she felt that it was what she should say. Yet very quickly she realised that she really did mean it. She handed him the plate and Jacob took a spoonful then literally sighed, letting the creamy dessert melt on his tongue, his eyes closed in genuine pleasure. It was wonderful to see a man enjoying a meal that she had made. If Edward actually turned up to eat with her and Renesmee he ate quickly, fork grasped in one hand as it shovelled food in, the other scrolling through e-mails or news stories on his mobile phone. She couldn't remember the last time that he had complimented her on her cooking. "I really did enjoy it," she smiled at Jacob, enjoying his enjoyment. She spooned her own dessert into her mouth, almost missing the target as she kept her eyes on Jacob. His skin was tan against the soft white cotton of the T-shirt. She noticed that his nose was wide and crooked, a bump suggesting that it could have been broken in the past. His mouth worked steadily through the panna cotta, enjoying each bite with equal gusto. A small fleck escaped to the side of his mouth and without thinking she put a finger out to wipe it away, as she would do with Renesmee. He grabbed her hand, surprised by her bold movement and immediately broke into a lascivious grin.

"I'm not missing a bit of that." Before she could complain he pulled her forefinger into his warm mouth, sucking the creamy liquid from it, drawing the flesh slowly from knuckle to fingertip. It was absurdly erotic and she gasped out loud, taken by surprise. His mouth was warm and firm and promised so much more. Their eyes locked as her finger left his mouth. They were burning, cheeky and alive but serious as he kept hold of her hand, flipping it over to trail a series of wildly erotic kisses on her wrist.

Since when, thought Bella, had her wrist been an erogenous zone? She writhed in what she hoped was a subtle manner on the bench seat, enjoying the arc of sensation spreading across her body from that simple movement and the path that his hot kisses were trailing up her arm. His lips were hot and firm and the grazing of his stubble against the soft skin made her tingle.

Edward, she thought, a single sane thought against the heat that was building, had reduced their lovemaking sessions to sex by number, a tweak of one, a rub of two, the same sequence time after time, obligation rather than genuine desire. Was their marriage over? She didn't want to dwell on that too much. She still loved Edward. He was a good husband and father, she wasn't ready to give up on him completely. But there was the small matter of him staying in the city with Jessica and the fact that they hadn't made love in months. I need this, she thought, in a moment of clarity. I need this for me.


	3. Chapter 3

"Shit," cursed Jacob, as she took charge and pulled his sizeable finger into her own mouth, licking it as if it was an ice lolly. "I can't do this." He snatched his finger back as if she had bitten him.

"What?" She was confused. "I thought that we were enjoying ourselves."

"We were," he ran his hand through his hair, making it stick up in soft black glossy spikes. "I just can't do it, not like this."

"What do you mean?" Bella was on the offensive, embarrassed that he had pulled away from her. Had she misread the situation? Was he being friendly and she had mistaken it for a sexual overture? She put her hands on her hips, trying to look confident and in control even though inside her heart was beating crazily in her chest.

He looked conflicted. He opened his mouth more than once to try to explain but the words wouldn't come out.

"Spit it out," she said, a little cattily. "I want you to tell me exactly what you mean."

"Edward paid me." The words tumbled out, fast and quiet. His head was down, looking at the table and he looked tentatively up at her, peeking though dark eyelashes to try to gauge her reaction. She crossed her arms across her chest and cocked her head at him, silently telling him to continue. "Edward paid me." He started again, sitting up straight this time, resolved to confess. "He would have hired me for the renovations regardless after the job I did for Alice and Jasper but he offered me triple to seduce you at the same time." Bella's mouth fell open in shocked response. "And a feature in a glossy magazine."

"I thought that you really liked me," she said. Her voice was softer than she had intended, giving away the fact that she was genuinely hurt by this revelation. Both the fact that Edward would do that and the charade that Jacob had liked her.

"I did!" His hands were through his hair again, then flat on the table, a subconscious attempt to convey honesty. "I mean, I do. I couldn't take my eyes off you at Alice and Jasper's and he must have noticed that. He got the impression that you liked me too so..." She fell silent, cursing herself that she had been so obvious in her appreciation of Jacob. Edward always said that he could read her like a book but she hadn't realised that her innermost thoughts were on her face for all to see. "I'm sorry Bella. It seemed like a dream come true to be working on the cabin and spending time with you as well. You're beautiful and classy but I was just being selfish. I didn't realise how nice you were. In fact, I'd put you on a pedestal so much that I kind of forgot that you were a real person with a personality and feelings. But now we're here I just can't go on with it." His head fell again, cheeks blazing, clearly embarrassed.

"What does Edward get out of this?" Bella was slightly confused by his role in this.

"He gets to watch."

"Watch?" questioned Bella, casting her eyes wildly around the RV as if he would pop out of a cupboard at any time.

"Webcam," admitted Jacob. "The RV and select points in the house have webcams set up. It seems that your husband is a bit of a peeping tom." Edward? That was something that she hadn't been aware of. However, casting her mind back there had been times when she was in the bath or shower and she had been convinced of a shadow against the keyhole. The thought that he might have been watching her, touching his cock as he peered through the keyhole thrilled her, surprising herself as her pussy almost immediately moistened. She brought her mind back to the present, striving to maintain the moral high ground.

"Where?" She demanded. "Tell me exactly what he can see."

"The master bedroom and bathroom are fully rigged, that's why there was such a rush to get them finished first. He can see pretty much everything that goes on in there in full colour with sound." She gulped, realising for the first time the full extent of the deceit. Jacob seemed pleased to be coming clean and kept on talking without prompt. "The rest of the place is old and a little problematic. There's a router attached to the phone connection in the master and that's how that works but there is only one phone point in the old house. There's old fashioned CCTV cameras in the RV and the garden. No," he shook his head urgently as she started to look frantically around. "Don't look, he's probably watching and he'll know that I told you." She nodded and settled back into the bench reluctantly. "The RV, most of the house and the grounds are on CCTV. He can see in black and white but without sound and with no ability to zoom or anything."

"On my gosh!" She almost jumped out of her seat as a new, appalling thought hit her with a force that almost physical. "He's looking for a divorce! He's rigged this place up to get evidence of me being unfaithful!"

"No, no," said Jacob, quickly, "you've got the wrong end of the stick." Clearly he had information that she didn't so she let him continue. "That was my first thought but he immediately agreed to write a non-disclosure close into the agreement. If Edward posts that footage on-line or discloses it to any third party, including a divorce lawyer, he has to pay me millions in compensation. He was very clear that the footage was for his personal use only, which is one of the reasons that I agreed to do this." He laughed and fixed her with his dark eyes, relaxed and slightly crinkled in the corners now that the stress of keeping the secret had been unburdened, "Well, that and the fact that you're really, really hot."

She could feel that he was genuine in this conviction and a flush crept onto her cheeks, the kind of flush that spread right down to her chest. She couldn't help but smile. It had been so long since somebody had expressed desire for her in such simple terms. In a way that was free of assumptions of what she brought to the table as a wife, mother or the wife of a prominent Seattle businessman. It would make no sense for him to obtain evidence to divorce her as Bella owned 50% of the company.

"What are you going to do?" asked Jacob, suddenly serious, fixing her with his big brown eyes. "This is a really big deal for me. If you don't mind sharing the space with me I can tell Edward that you weren't interested and I'll still get paid and get the exposure."

"I don't know," admitted Bella, suddenly weary. "My gut reaction was to rush back to Seattle and give him a piece of my mind but now I honestly don't know."

"Sleep on it," he advised. "I'll totally understand if you want to rush off but maybe the break will do you good."

"I don't think I need to sleep on it," she replied, her voice more firm than her head felt. "I'm going to stay here. There's something really wrong with my marriage and I think that Edward and I both need a bit of time apart to think about things."

* * *

Bella lay in bed, wide awake. The clearing was far from civilisation and it was pitch black in the RV. After ushering Jacob out of the door and doing the dishes she had changed into her least sexy flannel pyjamas and jumped into the double bed near the cab. Jacob had said black and white but she now had the awful thought as to whether the cameras had night vision. Maybe Edward was looking at her right now, watching her lie awake and wondering what she was thinking. What if he saw her dribbling or snoring and was disgusted? She tried to tell herself that they stayed in the same bed every night anyway but that was a shared space, there was something vaguely disturbing about him watching her when he was alone.

What was she to do? She could go back to Seattle and have it out with him but every conversation recently had ended up in a shouting match or with one or both of them storming off. She knew, deep down, that confronting him would not solve anything. Or, as Jacob suggested, she could hang around for the few weeks it would take to complete the renovations. She could lie in the sun, catch up on her reading and enjoy Jacob's company in a platonic matter. Sighing, she rolled onto her side and pulled the duvet tightly around her. It was the platonic bit that worried her. Before she had even known about the cameras she had virtually decided to let things take their course. Nothing had changed in that respect, she was pretty sure that she would give in to temptation in no time if she stayed here.

It was only after more tossing and turning that the solution came to her, clear and fully formed. Bella wanted Jacob. Jacob wanted Bella. Edward wanted to watch. Edward didn't know that Jacob had told Bella about the cameras. If Edward wants a show, she thought, I'll give him a show. She would seduce Jacob and make sure it was all on camera. Edward could jack off to it from afar and they could talk seriously about their own marriage and future when she got home. Decision made, exhaustion overcame her and she fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

Edward sat upright in bed, propped up by plush pillows and stared at the dark screen of his laptop. He wished that he'd had time to rig the place with a night vision camera. Apart from that he was pleased by how the evening had gone. Although he couldn't hear what they were saying he had noticed the suggestive finger licking that had accompanied dessert and was pretty confident that Jacob would manage to seduce Bella pretty soon.

His cock was rock hard. Ironic, he thought, as he opened his favourite internet page, that it usually took hardcore porn to get him that hard, yet the sight of his wife sucking another man's finger fully clothed made him ready to explode. The entry page of the site came up, lurid and red, bidding him pick the girl of his choice. Yet as he looked at the half dressed women and their promise of filth he just couldn't get Bella out of his head. The look on her face, the way that she took the finger into her mouth. Frustrated, he closed the laptop down and turned off the light, using the darkness to picture himself in that RV with Bella. He stroked his cock hard and fast, frantic as a teenager and shot his load before his imagination even took her clothes off. He wiped himself clean with a fist of tissues from the bedside table and in Bella's absence dropped the soggy package onto the bedroom floor. Satisfied and happy he drifted off to sleep.

* * *

After tossing and turning until the early hours Bella slept late, until almost lunchtime. It was the sound of Jacob working outside that finally guilt tripped her into getting out of bed. She showered and tried to decide what to wear. It was a blazing June day outside and she quickly decided to make the most of the sun whilst it was shining, after all, the weather in Washington State could be very unpredictable. Swimwear was obvious, but which costume? She had brought three. The first was a flowery, mumsy costume that even she thought was a little old for her. The second was a blue and white sailor striped bikini that she had worn in the Caribbean last year. The legs were cut high to make the most of her long legs and the bra cups made the most of her modest chest. Perfectly nice. Emphasis on _nice._ The third costume was a bikini which Edward had bought for her but which had never been worn. He had ordered it from a specialist firm in Australia and it was excellent quality but quite frankly, tiny. She had laughed at the tiny triangles of bikini top and at the thong bottom, thrown it in a drawer and told Edward that she would never wear it, not even around their pool at home. She wondered now whether she had missed something that day, something in his intentions toward her. What had he been trying to tell her? What would he think when she put it on now?

She gritted her teeth and tried to stop her mind from working so hard. She let the towel drop to the floor and stepped into the bikini. It was black and seemed smaller on her than it had been in her hands even moments before. The halter neck helped create the illusion of cleavage but the triangles didn't cover much of her breasts at all. The thong brief was high cut and fairly modest in front with a thong back. The material was god quality and she didn't feel uncomfortable. In fact, looking in the mirror installed in the RV bathroom she had to admit that she looked pretty good. Instead of wanting to hide her body she felt confident. Sexy. Ready to seduce the unsuspecting Jacob while Edward looked on. The sun was strong so she popped a floaty sheer cover up over the bikini, slipped into some flip flops and topped the whole ensemble with a wide brimmed straw hat.

"Jacob!" She called out to him as she walked across the clearing to the house where he was part way through re-cladding the wood exterior. At the sound of her voice he got up to greet her, stripped to the waist and glistening with sweat. She found herself gulping as she noticed how low slung his jeans were and the V of muscle that led into their tantalising exterior. "I've brought you some lemonade," she handed him a glass of the cool, sweet and tangy liquid. He took a sip and winced slightly as the sour sensation hit his cheeks.

"That's good," he said, with a grin, immediately taking a larger sip. "I see that you're dressed for relaxing." He nodded towards her floaty cover up. "Have you decided to stay?"

"I think so," she replied, determined not to make her true intentions known too early. "I just need some time away to think about things and where better than here?" She indicated the clearing, suddenly aware that since Jacob had stopped working that the clearing was absent of all man-made sounds. Only the crack of crickets, the buzzing of the bees and the chirping of the birds disturbed the absolute silence. He nodded a silent understanding.

"Could you do me a favour?" she asked, sweetly.

"Of course," replied Jacob immediately, "name it."

"Could you help me unravel the RV canopy so that I've got some shade?"

"Not a problem," he grinned, setting his lemonade down on the deck. "I'll do it now."

"Thanks Jacob." She had already got a lounger and table out from the RV's storage and set out her Kindle, sunglasses, suncream and a couple of bottles of water on the table so that she wouldn't have to move for anything all afternoon. Jacob found the mechanism and started to unfurl the striped canopy from the side of the RV across her. While his back was turned and busy she pulled off the cover up and laid it carefully on the back of the lounger. By the time he had finished the shop she was already lying down on her front, giving him a prime view of her thong clad bottom. She was rewarded with a sharp intake of breath. She looked over her shoulder, indicating the sun cream on the table. "Would you mind getting my back?" He simply stared at her, a little dumbfounded. "Please," she said, as nicely as she could muster when her pussy was already getting wet at the sight and sound of his reaction to her. "I burn really easily and there's nobody else to do it."

"No, no," he stuttered, "of course I don't mind." He picked up the lotion and she was pleased to note that he put it into his hands to warm it before rubbing it onto her back. His hands were big and strong yet surprising gentle as they tried to make the task workmanlike but remaining gentle. He diligently covered every square every inch of her back, studiously avoiding the waistband of her bikini bottoms. "All done," he said and she smiled at the sound of his voice, a little higher and more strangled than normal.

"Thanks Jacob," she purred, turning on her Kindle to indicate that her use for him was over. She watched him walk away and almost felt sorry for him, walking a little stiffly then surreptitiously readjusting the raging erection that she had glimpsed when he quickly rose to his feet. Nevertheless, she didn't let herself feel too sorry for him. Jacob had been in on the plan to seduce her. She planned to take advantage of him but she was going to play with him for a little bit while he still thought that she intended keeping their relationship on a platonic level.

Some time later she rolled over onto her back. Jacob was at the house so she wasn't sure if he could see her but she had set up the lounger so that Edward would definitely be able to see her on the black and white camera. She untied the bikini top behind her neck and pulled the string at her back until it fell away. She picked up the bottle of lotion and rubbed it slowly onto her legs, arms and stomach before dripping the white lotion onto her chest and taking entirely too long to rub it in, squeezing her breasts together and letting them fall back into their natural place. Always careful, she had some total sunblock in a stick for her lips and nose so she rubbed the cool greasy stick onto her rosy nipples. They grew hard and puckered as the thick protective sunscreen cooled in the light breeze. Fighting the urge to put her hand into her bikini bottoms there and then she lay back on the lounger and lay out flat, one arm behind her head in a langourous imitation of sleep. She thought that she would feel exposed but the warmth and the comforting sound of Jacob sawing and hammering nearby left her so relaxed that she fell asleep almost immediately, coming to only when the a chill wind indicated that the sun was starting to go down.

* * *

She woke, not with a start at realising she was exposed, but gently, from a refreshing slumber. How long had it been since she had slept this well? At night Edward tossed and turned and the Mother in her always had one ear open for Renesmee. She was always busy during the day with lunches and committees and the parent teacher association. When had she last had the time to read a good book and snooze the afternoon away? She sat up, stretched and pulled the flimsy cover up over her head. Rising to her feet she slipped her feet into the flip-flops and made her way across to the house where Jacob was clearly finishing up for the day. He had a T-shirt on now and there was visible fresh sweat under his arms and in the centre of his back. His neck and arms were red from a day spent in the sun.

"Jacob," She chastised him in my best motherly voice. "Didn't you have any sunscreen on today? You're red raw."

"I did this morning," he replied, snapping the lid of a heavy metal toolbox shut and pulling himself up to his full height, rubbing the base of his back. "But when you sweat as much as I do it doesn't stay on for long." He turned towards her and smiled, the smile fading as quickly as it flashed across his face as he noticed that the cover up was almost see through and that her nipples, stiffened from the cooling breeze were clearly visible through the flimsy fabric. With an obvious effort he wrenched his gaze from her chest to focus on her face. "Talking of sweat," he said, a little nervously, "I'd better get showered."

"Okay," replied Bella, aiming for nonchalance although butterflies leapt in her stomach, symptom of the rising excitement of what this was going to lead to tonight. "Come over to the RV when you're done, I thought I would barbecue a couple of steaks tonight."

"Sounds great," he said, smiling naturally as the prospect of food momentarily took his mind off trying not to look at her chest. Then his gaze slipped naturally down once more and he stiffened again, the smile fixed. She felt a bloom of tenderness towards him well up inside her. Yes, he had been complicit in Edward's plan but he had confessed the moment that they started to get close. He believed that she wanted a platonic relationship and he was trying his hardest to treat her like a friend and not to stare at her breasts even though her nipples were screaming for attention.

"See you later then," she said, flashing him a sweet smile before turning on her heel and walking towards the RV without looking back. She could feel his gaze upon her back as surely as if he was touching her. Little did he know that tonight was going to be his lucky night.


	4. Chapter 4

Edward sat in his desk chair, both laptops open in front of him and broadcasting black and white images. He was supposed to be out at a black tie event, the opening of a local art gallery. However, even though the footage was backing up onto a special hard drive he simply couldn't pull himself away.

The footage from this afternoon had piqued his interest. Bella had laughed, literally laughed when he had bought her that bikini. He almost choked on his coffee when he saw her in it today. Again, both laptops had been open, this time one set up for work and the second covering the CCTV feeds from the cabin just in case anything of note happened.

"Are you okay, boss?" asked Kevin, operations manager of the Seattle factory, across the open telephone link.

"Yes, Kevin," replied Edward, as normally as he could, "coffee went down the wrong way, that's all. Please continue." He pressed the mute button on the phone. Whilst the responsible business owner in him continued to listen to the conference call and the facts and figures being discussed therein the pervert was watching his wife slathering suncream over her pert, round breasts, bathed in midday sun.

What was she doing? Jacob wouldn't even be able to see her from there, would he? She stretched out, long legs slightly spread, one elegant arm above her head and appeared to doze off. She never looked so relaxed at home, usually keeping one eye on Renesmee at all times around the pool. The view was absolutely perfect. Edward had seen Jacob help Bella with the awning and the furniture earlier on, he must have made sure that the angle of the sunlounger was perfect for viewing from the position of the CCTV camera. Edward was glad to see the other man taking his responsibilities seriously!

He kept Bella's nap on one of the laptops and re-immersed himself in the teleconference, several follow up phone calls and a couple of hours working on the business plan for the Greenburgh factory. It was surprisingly soothing to be able to glance across and see his topless, relaxed wife live at any point. He turned off the laptop as Bella re-entered the RV. Having told Jessica to make his excuses at the gallery he took a shower, grabbed a cold beer from the fridge and settled in for the evening to watch what was going on at Cullen's Cabin.

* * *

"That steak was absolutely delicious," said Jacob. They were sitting outside on a cheap, plastic table and chair set. The charcoal barbecue was still hot, taking the chill off the evening air.

"Thanks Jacob," replied Bella, pleased to be complimented on her cooking again. "The trick is the seasoning."

"The seasoning, the cooking technique, the buttery corn on the cob. Even," he continued, lifting his bottle of beer to take a sip,"the choice of beer. You can't put a foot wrong in the kitchen as far as I'm concerned."

"Oh, it was nothing," she felt herself colour slightly and jumped to her feet to clear the plates.

"Sit down," he commanded, in such a stern voice that she found herself immediately obeying. "I'll do the washing up."

"Oh," she replied in surprise.

"Where I come from," grinned Jacob, stacking her plate with food left over onto his empty plate and balancing the empty salad bowl carefully on top, "the cook doesn't do any washing up."

"Sounds good to me." She sank back into the plastic chair. Jacob took the first load of dishes into the kitchen then reappeared from the RV a moment later with two fresh beers. He twisted the top off one and handed it to her then picked up the remaining water glasses and side plates to take off to the kitchen. She took a sip of the beer, letting the cold, fizzy liquid roll across her tongue and slide down her throat. She hadn't drunk a beer for years. At home her and Edward would drink fine wine or champagne and when she was watching her weight, which seemed to be constantly, she would indulge in a gin and tonic. But there was something about a cold beer that seemed perfect for right here, right now. This place, the mountain cabin in the beautiful clearing with the lights of civilisation twinkling far, far off in the distance. It called for something rustic, something real, like a cold beer.

"All done," confirmed Jacob as he sank into his own chair and twisted the top off his own beer, taking a long swig.

"So, where do you come from then?" asked Bella.

"Somewhere that cooks don't wash up, obviously," he replied with a mischievous lopsided grin that made his eyes shine in the dim light from the grill.

"Yes, I got that," she replied, mock annoyed, "but where is that?"

"La Push," he replied, serious now.

"Sounds familiar," she said softly, almost to herself, as she racked her brains to think what she associated that name with.

"Man," laughed Jacob, "I can almost hear your brain working from over here! Let me put you out of your misery, it's part of an Indian reservation."

"Wow," she said, "you don't look..." then stopped herself, realising how stupid what she was about to say was.

"I get that all the time," he rolled his eyes and took another swig of beer, "city folks expect some long haired dude dressed in leather and feathers and they can't quite get their heads around me."

"And you're so..." Again, she stopped herself from blurting out exactly what she was thinking.

"So what?" he asked. She shook her head, embarrassed. "Go on." She shook her head again. "Come on Bella," he urged, grinning, "I'll start to get a complex if you don't let me know what you were going to say.

"You're so hot!" she blurted out.

"What," his eyes widened at her confession, "since when was it the rule that an Indian couldn't be hot?"

"To be honest, I've never met a real Indian," she replied, apologetically. "I'm so ignorant, I don't know a thing about your culture or tribe."

"The Quileute, that's what we're called. Famous for woodwork and ship building."

"So," Bella giggled, the effects of the beer starting to take hold, "that's why you're so good with your hands."

"Bella, Bella," he said slowly, shaking his head, "you have no idea..." The silence stretched out between then, a chasm of possibilities. "Anyway," he said brightly, obviously trying to get the conversation back to a safer footing, "that's mighty flirty talk for somebody who wants to keep things platonic."

"Do I?" She looked straight at him.

"Um, yes?" His brow furrowed with confusion. "I thought that when you stayed..."

"You thought?" She let the question hang in the air. "Did I say that I wanted to keep things platonic?"

"Well," he still seemed a little confused, "not exactly... I just assumed..." He looked at her, speechless, not sure where the conversation was going. Bella, aware that his gaze was fixed on her, took another leisurely swig of beer then dropped her free hand to the zip of her hoodie. Jacob gulped, the sound audible in the chill night air. She toyed with the metal zipper, rubbing the edge provocatively before taking a firm grip and pulling it down slowly, one metal tooth at a time, until it was six inches lower than where it started. She was wearing a simple cotton vest and cut off denim shorts under the hoodie and the unzipping revealed a reasonable albeit not explicit expanse of cleavage.

"I want you to seduce me," she said, softly, simply. "I want to take a break from being a wife and a Mother and I want to do that with you." His eyes widened, not quite sure what he was hearing. "I also want to make sure that Edward gets the show of his life. That's why," she pulled the zipper back up to the top again, "you have to look like you're seducing me."

"I should ..."

"No, you shouldn't," she interrupted firmly. "Jacob, I can tell that you're a genuine guy. You've been a real gentleman and when you thought that I wanted to keep things platonic you respected my wishes."

"Um, what next then?" he asked, still a little unsure.

"Another beer, I think," said Bella, placing her empty bottle onto the table, "then I'll let you know when you can make your move."

"No pressure then," he muttered.

"No pressure, stud." He laughed at her faux sexy voice, the naturalness between them immediately returning then picked up the empty bottles and climbed back into the RV.

They chatted easily for the next hour, laughing and flirting over yet another bottle of beer. The tension in the air ratcheted up, electricity all but crackling as the shared knowledge of impending seduction fizzed and banged. Jacob's double entendres were more frequent, Bella's voice huskier, their laughing louder and more frequent, relishing the shared knowledge unknown to the man watching on the silent webcam.

"Now," breathed Bella, finally.

"Sorry?" questioned Jacob, eyes suddenly wide, a deer in her headlights.

"Now, stud," she emphasised _stud_ in the same husky way that she had done earlier. "I'm ready. Make it look good," she winked.

"Um," he floundered a little, uncomfortable with being put on the spot, "did I see some JD in the RV?"

"You did," said Bella, "the honey type."

"Nightcap?" He was already on his feet and halfway to the door.

"I guess so..." she started to reply but the screen door had already shut behind him. She wasn't entirely sure that hard liquor was the answer but if he felt they needed a little Dutch courage then who was she to disagree. He re-emerged a moment later with two glasses wedged into one huge hand. The screen door banged shut behind him again. Unfortunately he tripped over something and Bella was suddenly drenched.

"Ugh!" she gasped, jumping to her feet as the strong smelling alcohol hit her face, her chest and soaked her hoodie. She tried to pull the hoodie away from her skin but the alcohol had soaked all the way through to the underlayer. "Jacob, I'm absolutely soaked!"

"Oh no," he said, in a voice that was far from surprised. "Let's get you into the RV and into some dry clothes."

"Jacob," she growled, a smile threatening to reach the corners of her mouth, "was that deliberate?"

"No!" he protested, eyes sparkling, trying to keep the grin from his face. "And even if it was deliberate it will look like an accident on the webcam."

"You little devil!" she cried.

"You ain't seen nothing yet," he quipped, opening the door of the RV. "After you."

In the RV Bella steadied herself against the table in the kitchen area. Despite the sureness of her words outside she was frankly terrified. This is for me, she thought. This is for me and it's for Edward too. Jacob entered the RV behind her and pulled the door to, snapping the lock shut despite their distance from civilisation. He turned off the overhead lights and with a flick of another switch turned on the accent lighting embedded into the walls of the RV.

"Not the sexiest place in the world," he said, pulling a face at the chintzy sofas and the formica kitchen units and table top. "We could always go to the house?"

"Lord, no," she said, breathing out a bellyful of air that she hadn't realised that she was holding. "Black and white and no sound works just fine for me." With shaking hand she undid the zipper of her hoodie and pulled if off, throwing it into the tidy living area further into the van. The simple yellow cotton vest underneath was soaked and the lace of her bra was clearly visible. Without thinking her hands grazed her wet nipples, making them protrude further through the flimsy fabric. Jacob immediately closed the gap between them and took her face into his hands. She looked up at him as he travelled ninety percent of the way to her lips. There was a question in his dark eyes, an uncertainty that needed answering. She closed her eyes and closed the gap between them to instigate their very first kiss.

It would be wrong, she thought, to say that there was immediate fireworks. The kiss started out soft, sweet, almost chaste, the kind of kiss that you would like to remember from your high school sweetheart. The thought that Edward was her high school sweetheart dropped into her head but she quickly pushed that to the back of her mind. Jacob's lips were full, soft and warm and he kissed her gently and with a reverence that surprised her, maintaining a gap between their bodies. It was Bella who introduced tongue to the party, tentatively exploring him and encouraging him to do the same. It was Bella who closed the gap between their bodies, hooking two fingers into the belt loops on his jeans and pulling him against her, wedging herself between his body and the hard backing of the table. Her legs were starting to feel a tiny bit unsteady, added to by the realisation that the hard length pressing insistently against her stomach was his cock. The thrill excited her and the resulting adrenaline weakened her legs and her grip on reality. She wrapped her arms around him, trapping his hardness against her, exploring the muscular slopes of his back. He was all muscle, an exciting concoction of knots and sinews that writhed, alive under her touch smelling of fresh, clean outdoors man. She buried her head into his chest and breathed in the elusive sent, an essence that could never be bottled. Encouraged, he wound his arms around her, still gently, so that she could feel the coiled strength in his arms and shoulders. She pulled his bottom lip between hers, biting down with enough force that he groaned into her mouth. He broke away, face serious now, and hooked his own fingers under the bottom of her cotton vest. Dutifully she raised her hands over head and let him pull it off. He pushed the strap of her bra over the edge of her shoulder, trailing butterfly kisses one way over her shoulder and back across her collar bone before repeating the exercise on the other side. She could feel his hand trembling and it made her go a little squishy inside upon intuiting that he was as nervous as her. He dropped to his knees in front of her and unbuttoned the top button of her shorts.

"Stop," her body stiffened suddenly, a terrible thought entering her head. He smiled and carried on trying to unbutton the shorts. "Stop!" she said, firmly enough to let him know that she meant it and that it was not a playful noise. Immediately he was on his feet.

"Bella, are you okay? What is it?"

What was it? How could she tell him about the insecurity that had all but been forgotten in the recent lack of sex life between her and Edward.

"Is it me?" he continued. "Have I done something wrong? Please tell me I've not done anything to hurt you?" It was the hurt in his eyes, the concern, the potential for self-hate that made her speak up on the basis that she didn't want him hurting because of her issues.

"It's not you, it's me," she began, softly.

"Not the first time I've heard that," he replied with a small smile that she returned. He stayed quiet, intuitively giving her the space that she needed.

"It's just that, I'm a mother." He nodded but the furrows in his brow gave away that he wasn't following her. "I have given birth. To a baby."

"Not following..."

"I've got a scar," she blurted out. "A scar from the C-section that I had when Renesmee was born."

"I don't care," he smiled and tried to pull him towards her again, conversation closed. She put her arms up in front of him and he pulled away immediately, frowning.

"Well, I do care," she said, looking up into his eyes, pleading for him to understand. "It's huge and angry and red and I've never shown it to anybody."

"Bella, you are one of the most beautiful women that I have ever seen. A scar isn't going to change my opinion one iota. In fact," he grinned, "it might help me believe that you're real and not some sort of fantasy."

"Such a sweet talker," she quipped, regarding him with cocked head.

"Look," he pulled his soft grey T-shirt over his head, giving her the first close up glimpse of his magnificent torso. She resisted the urge to pick up his T-shirt and sniff it. "If we're talking scars I'll show you mine first." He turned around, showing her a jagged scar on the right side of his ribcage. "This," he said, "was when my cousin Leah stabbed me with a potato peeler."

"Really?" said Bella, quickly overcoming her reticence to run her forefinger down the flat white scar. "Leah sounds like a bitch!"

"She's better now she's grown up," he replied, turning back toward her "and to be honest I was sixteen and deserved it."

"I don't want to know what you were doing to deserve it," Bella shook her head.

"Good, because I wasn't going to tell you and chance your opinion of me falling. This," he said, pointing to a red scar a few inches above his hand, on the cusp of where the dark hair of his upper arm gave way to the soft smooth underbelly. "I did this a year ago. Slipped when I was chiselling out a dovetail joint." She traced her finger over this scar, still raised and red. "Hurt like hell," he offered, "blood everywhere."

"Sounds gross!"

"It was," he agreed. Before she could protest he had stepped out of his soft jeans and was standing in front of her in tight black boxer shorts, pointing to something under the waistband. Concentrate, Bella, concentrate. "This", he said, pointing to a red scar approximately two inches long a little above the tantalising V that disappeared deep into the shorts, "is from when I had my appendix out two years ago." He looked at her, expectant. Not wanting to seem chicken she ran her finger over the last scar, suddenly preternaturally aware of his form.

"You just wanted to get me thinking about your package," she said, looking into his eyes as one finger slowly traced the mark.

"That's true," he said, aiming for nonchalance although the slight waver in his voice gave away how aware he was of her proximity, "the agonising pain, the emergency surgery and the humiliating hospital stay were all just a carefully laid plan to get you thinking about my junk at this precise moment in time."

"Well, it worked," she smiled, trailing the errant finger over the bulge in his shorts and feeling inordinately pleased when his expression turned to fleeting bliss. In a moment he had recovered, trying to unbutton the top of her shorts again. This time she let him, standing with gritted teeth as he unbuttoned the four buttons and let them drop to the floor. She was wearing pretty lacy panties that matched her bra. He dropped to his knees in front of her. Carefully he pulled the waistband of the panties down until her C-section scar was visible.

"Is that it?" he asked, pointing at the admittedly faded six inch scar.

"Yes," she nodded, licking her lips and realising that her mouth had suddenly gone dry.

"That's nothing," he scoffed, running a finger across it. She reached behind her and grabbed the bottle of JD, screwing the lid off and discarding it. He bent his mouth to her and kissed her scar, licking and kissing his way across it as if it were a far more intimate part of her body. She put the liquor bottle to her lips and took a swig straight from the bottle. It burned enough to bring tears to her eyes yet the honey aftertaste soothed and warmed. He stood up again and took the bottle from her hand to take a swig for himself. She let her bottom set against the formica table again, regarding him for a moment, swaying back a little to take a mental picture that she could keep for posterity. He was long, strong and muscular, shapely legs and trim stomach accentuated by the tight black shorts. His shoulders were broad and strong, his chest defined. The strong arms were toned and tanned by hard work. The slightest of muffin tops confirmed that he wasn't a gym bunny and somehow this tiny acknowledgement that he wasn't Greek God perfect was the undoing of her. As he dropped the bottle away from this mouth she took the bottle from him, stole another swig, then put it down on the floor. Upon standing up she hooked her forefingers into the waistband of his boxer shorts, pulling him towards her in an echo of the way that she had done the same with his jeans earlier.

This time when they kissed it was as if they had headed straight to the advanced class. From soft and tender they morphed to needy and urgent, Jacob's stubble threatening to irritate her sensitive skin as they mashed their lips together, not that she cared, given that they were both suddenly desperate to get as close to each other as possible. Her hands roamed further this time, using the top of his back to pull him closer again before running her fingernails down the firm hot flesh hard enough to make him lift his head from her mouth and groan out loud. The fact that she had urged that primal noise from him only encouraged her further. Her hands carried on down his back and over the firm curves of his bum where she gripped tightly, urging him on. His head dipped to her neck, biting and sucking this time, making her squirm away from him in horror and delight. He ran his hands down her back to her bottom, and down to her upper thighs. Using one knee to spread her legs he lifted her onto the tabletop and spread her legs in one effortless movement, stepping into the void and pressing his body against hers so that the hard length of his cock was pressed against her pussy. He dropped his head to kiss her again and she couldn't help herself grinding against it, angling herself so that it rubbed against her clitoris. He reached a practised hand behind her and undid her bra catch, yanking it down her arms and discarding it.

"You've done that before," she gasped, slightly outraged at the ease with which her underwear had given up.

"I've done this before too," he said, dipping his head to squeeze her breasts together and take one swollen nipple in his mouth, alternating firm sucking that made her bite her bottom lip in pleasure tinged with pain with feather light kisses and licking that made her tickly and squirmy. Her pussy was missing the pressure of his cock and she pushed his torso roughly away, only to pull him his hips straight towards her pelvis. This time she wound her legs around him, ensuring that his cock was rubbing exactly where she wanted it to be, kissing him harder than ever, winding her hands in his unruly hair. Her hands found their way to his boxer shorts. With curious abandon she made enough room between them for her to plunge her hand down to seek him out. Her mouth formed a perfect O at what she found, not as long as Edward but all girth, enough to fill her hand and remould her O to a lascivious smile.

"Jacob," she gushed, "I had no idea that you were hiding this under here!" She ran a hand experimentally up and down the hard length and this time it was his turn to swoon slightly.

"Bella," he cautioned, panting slightly as he gently took her hands away, "I'm fit to burst right now, if you want this to last longer than thirty seconds you should stop touching me now."

"Stop touching it... now?" she quizzed, gripping it hard in a movement that wrung a surprisingly girly squeak from him. He nodded, unable to compose a more coherent response.

"Condoms?" she said, suddenly aware that the time was near.

"Clear," said Jacob. "Edward," he explained, a little more coherent when her hand stopped gripping him, "Edward made me get tested. I'm clear. You're on the pill right?" She nodded. The thought of Edward disturbed her train of thought. He had really worked through every detail of this plan, even considering her health and safety.

"Bella," Jacob interrupted urgently, touching her face and pulling her back toward him, "stay with me." With one swift movement he pulled down her panties, leaving her naked. When his hand snaked between her legs any thoughts of Edward were pushed far from mind.

"Oh, you're wet," he groaned in delight, dipping an exploratory finger into her. She didn't like dirty talk, didn't like the contrived phrases and the cliché, yet there was something about the way that Jacob was narrating exactly what he was feeling and thinking, the direct line between his brain and his mouth, that turned her on immeasurably. "So, so, wet." He used the wetness of his finger to lubricate her clitoris, rubbing a delicate finger across it, testing her and eliciting an involuntary sigh She pulled his head toward her, kissing him roughly, grazing teeth and stubble and tongues as his unrelenting hand alternated between her pussy and her clit.

"Now, Jacob," she whispered.

"Are you sure?" he said, pausing kissing her for just a moment to search her eyes for any hint of a doubt.

"I'm sure," she said. She spread her legs helpfully wider, scooting forward to the edge of the formica table. He stepped out of his boxer shorts and was almost immediately pushing the edge of his cock against her entrance. She inhaled sharply as he entered her.

"Are you okay?" he grimaced, standing stock still with monumental effort, half in, half out.

"Absolutely fine," she breathed, reaching around to his bum and pulling him towards her at her own pace. "You're big... I just need... a minute." Finally he was in. She wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He thrust gently and she moaned into his chest, tentatively licking a small hard nipple before throwing her head back to look at his face, contorted in concentration and enjoyment. After a few moments she leaned back onto the table, propping herself up on her elbows.

"You look amazing," said Jacob, tweaking a nipple in a way that went straight to her pussy.

"No, you look amazing," she retorted, suddenly fascinated by the way that his thick cock looked plunging in and out of her. Lying back his movement was no longer impaired and on every measured stroke he almost took it fully out of her before plunging back in. He moved his thumb to her clit and suddenly every movement was intensified. Bella was so turned on, virtually on the verge of orgasm. Jacob's laboured breathing and pained expression suggested that he wasn't too far away himself.

"Harder, Jacob," she demanded. He paused for a minute, not quite sure what to make of her comment. "Harder," she demanded, "I'm not made of glass, you won't hurt me." Her wish was immediately fulfilled as he upped the tempo, plunging so hard into her that she cried out then pulling back to do it again. Once he had the rhythm he found her clit again, rubbing his slick figure over and over in a perfectly synchronised rhythm. He was pushing so hard now that she dropped flat on her back on the table, pushing against the window sill with her hands to provide the purchase to steel her pelvis for the next thrust.

A guttural moan escaped her mouth, a wild primitive sound that didn't sound like it should come from her. It spurred Jacob on, perspiration creating a sheen on his face and his chest as he thrust into her, over and over. The moan came again, a noise from deep inside that Bella couldn't have stopped even if she tried. Her body convulsed and waves of pleasure ripped through her, spurring him to push harder and harder to his own finish.

"We have to eat from this table," she said with mock dismay as he pulled out a few moments later, their mixed juices dripping onto the table below.

"Correction, you have to eat off it," said Jacob, pulling his boxer shorts back on with a grin. "I've got my little bedsit at the house."

"I'm going to jump in the shower," she said, wrinkling her nose as she squeezed the sticky mess that was oozing out of her between her thumb and forefinger, "could you..."

"Yes, yes," he said, ushering her towards the bathroom. "I'll clear up."

She turned on the shower, housed in a tiny moulded plastic cubicle and let the hot water stream down her body. Her body was satisfied but her brain was already flitting between the twin emotions of panic and remorse. After ten years of marriage she had committed adultery, admittedly at her husband's behest, but it was still adultery. She wasn't entirely how she felt. She didn't think that there was a moral precedent for this particular situation that dictated how she should feel. Whatever part of her thought that she could compartmentalise her life into husband and lover had been hopelessly naive. Alice used to say, before she met Jasper, that there were men to fuck and men to marry. Jacob was definitely marriage material. How could she class him as "just" a lover when he was funny, kind and respectful?

"Do you want me to stay?" asked Jacob, when she came out of the tiny bathroom shrouded in steam and wrapped in a fluffy white towel. He was obviously striving for casual but the question hung in the air, loaded with possibilities beyond those posed by the six words alone.

"No," she replied immediately, slightly defensive. "It just feels a bit, you know," she shrugged her shoulders, willing him to understand, "intimate?"

"Intimate?" he echoed, raising an eyebrow. "You're worried about a bit of cuddling after what we've just done?"

"That was just sex Jacob," she intoned firmly, not sure that he would believe her given that she barely believed herself.

"Just sex, then," he sighed, not bothering to hide his disappointment. He pulled his T-shirt and jeans back on. "See you in the morning then?" She smiled and nodded weakly in response, locking the door of the RV with an unsatisfying click when he left.

Finally alone she changed into pyjamas, stretched out on the sofa and flicked through the television channels until she found a re-run of an old black and white movie that she had seen dozens of times. The smell of sex seemed to be all around her, a constant reminder of her infidelity. There was no way that she could spend weeks up here, using Jacob while Edward looked on, unaware that she had now become complicit in the plan.

She barely watched the movie but instead stared into space and let her mind wander, exploring each and every possibility and the implications of any further action. Finally, as the credits rolled she felt that she had decided on an appropriate course of action. Upon going to bed, instead of turning off all of the lights she kept the light in the kitchen area on. She found a sketch book and a black marker pen in one of the kitchen drawers and carefully lettered two words in thick block capitals before propping it against the half full JD bottle.

 **I KNOW**


	5. Chapter 5

**I KNOW**

The two words pressed shards of iron into Edward's heart. After an initial few moments attempting denial he came to the conclusion that the two words had to be a direct message to him from Bella. He poured two fingers of Scotch from a decanter that had been a wedding gift from Carlisle and Esme, his hand shaking, and sat back in the desk chair, staring at the monitor. Bella had gone to bed quarter of an hour ago and was now asleep in the background of the camera shot however he couldn't tear his eyes away from the sign that she had left out, it's simple yet meaning laden message dominating the foreground.

 **I KNOW**

Jacob and Bella had barely exchanged two words after their explosive sexual encounter on the RV kitchen table so he was pretty sure that Jacob wouldn't have had an opportunity to tell her after the event. He was also fairly sure that she hadn't found out about the cameras by herself because he had been watching her constantly.

In truth Edward had suspected from the beginning that Jacob would find it hard to keep a secret given his open and honest nature. Equally the cynical part of him that saw the worst of people in his capitalist playground fervently hoped that the dual carrots of money and exposure would motivate him to keep his mouth shut and play along. The only sensible conclusion was that Jacob had broken down and told Bella about Edward's plan almost immediately but that she had still let him seduce her. The thought and the potential implications both excited and terrified Edward and for the umpteenth time that evening his cock swelled in the tight confines of his khaki trousers. In his head the sign said something different now.

 **I KNOW (AND I LIKED IT)**

He had to find a way to show her that he understood and to encourage her to continue acting out her wildest fantasies. And, he thought, as he logged onto the adult store, if some of his own fantasies were fulfilled in the process that would just be a bonus.

* * *

Bella was halfway through the latest Jackie Collins bonkbuster, stretched out on the sun lounger, when the crunch of tires on the gravel drive alerted her to the arrival of a truck. A courier van pulled into the clearing and a khaki clad senior citizen slowly climbed out. Luckily she was dressed fairly demurely today in a sweet ice cream print sun dress.

"Mrs Cullen?" he asked, squinting at her, one hand covering his eyes against the midday sun.

"Yes," she replied.

"Package for you." Surprised, she put her book to one side, rose to her feet, slipped into her flip flops and signed her name on the tiny electronic screen with the plastic stylus that he offered. "I thought I'd taken a wrong turn," he said, making small talk as he handed her the cardboard box and took back the electronic one.

"I can understand why," she replied, "it's been derelict for a while so I guess that this is the first mail that's been delivered here for some time."

"Lovely spot," he said, cocking his head towards the view.

"Thanks," Bella smiled in agreement, "I'm just sorry you had to come so far out of the way to find us."

"My pleasure," he said, touching the rim of his work cap in a quaint gesture, "have a great day now." He got back into the truck, executing a painfully slow nine point turn in the small space to nose the truck back toward the main road. As the noise of the tyres disappeared out of earshot she turned her attention to the parcel. She definitely wasn't expecting anything and the bland brown exterior of the box didn't give any hints as to what was inside. Shaking the box didn't yield any additional clues so she headed into the RV.

Placing the box on the table she rummaged through the kitchen drawers until she found a sharp utility knife. Carefully she used the tip to pierce the tape that was holding the top of the box together, dragging it impatiently through the tape to get to the contents within.

Upon opening the box she was faced with swathes of pink tissue paper. On top of the tissue paper was a card, the small size that you might send alongside a bouquet of flowers. There was no writing on the thick envelope so she opened it immediately and pulled out a single sheet of thick, good quality cream cardboard from inside it.

 _From Edward_

She turned the card over but there was no other writing on it but those two words. Setting it carefully to one side she pushed the pink tissue paper aside to find out what was underneath. There was a number of small packages, carefully wrapped in the same pink tissue paper and secured with heart shaped stickers with a small gold embossed logo that she recognised as the emblem of an extremely high end lingerie company. Suddenly impatient she ripped open the tissue paper of the top package to reveal the slithery black contents. It was a pair of silk pyjamas. Black, plain but beautiful and of the highest quality with a matching dressing gown in the same material. She smiled to herself. Edward hated her in flannel pyjamas. If he had his way she would sleep naked beside him each night but as a mother there was always part of her that had to be ready in case something happened.

Laying the pyjamas carefully to one side she picked the next carefully wrapped item out of the box, ripping the paper off immediately. Inside was a corset. It was classic, boned and surprisingly heavy, peacock green satin with black tulle ruffles on the bust and around the contoured bottom. It looked like something that a 1920's Wild West Saloon girl would wear and she absolutely adored it. Underneath the corset was nestled a matching pair of panties, surprisingly substantial given what she assumed was their intended purpose, also peacock green satin edged in black tulle. Thigh high black hold ups completed the outfit. She cradled the corset to her chest, smiling. The outfit was beautiful, sexy and exactly the kind of thing that she would have picked for herself. She couldn't remember the last time when she had indulged herself with anything more imaginative than functional black or white cotton separates. Where had this thoughtful Edward come from?

She opened the last package, a box within a box. Inside was a vibrator. She recognised it from the women's magazines that she sometimes browsed as the latest sensation. It was fairly large with a small additional appendage shaped like an animal head. Interest piqued, she ripped open the box, a smile spreading across her face as she realised that batteries were included, along with a generous bottle of strawberry scented lubricant. Forget Jacob, she thought, this one's for me and Edward. Flashing what she hoped was a lascivious smile at the camera she pulled her sundress over her head and turned on her new toy there and then.

* * *

"Thanks Senator," said Edward, shaking the man's hand firmly. "It means the world to me to put jobs and money back into the Greenburgh economy."

"No, thank you," said Senator Williams "since the steel plant closed..." He trailed off, probably, thought Edward, with a flash of annoyance, because Edward's wiki page had a huge section about Bella's family and how poor they had been when Charlie lost his job at the plant.

"Yes," said Edward briskly, indicating this part of the conversation closed, "it devastated the local economy to an extent that it has never really recovered."

"Indeed," agreed the Senator. "I understand that your wife still has family there?"

"Her father is the Chief of Police," explained Edward, "and he still plays a huge part in the Greenburgh community."

"Which," smiled the Senator, "explains why you are so keen to set up the Cullen Community Trust along with the new factory."

"Something like that," said Edward, dismissively, deliberately avoiding being put in a position where he had to explain exactly what Greenburgh meant to him and Bella. With the finer points of the reclamation of the brownfield site to be left to the architects and the planners he excused himself and drove across town to the Cullen Industries Head Office.

* * *

"I knew you could do it," repeated Jessica for the fifth time, topping up Edward's glass so that the bubbles overflowed. He frowned slightly, usually a little pedantic about office cleanliness, but let it go given the nature of the celebration. Edward had been hiding a magnum of champagne in his private fridge for months in anticipation of this day and the act of popping the giant cork represented the high point of his business career. The sleek glass and chrome boardroom was crowded and people were drinking champagne from plastic glasses and comedy Christmas mugs. The atmosphere was electric, the buzz and chatter almost deafening in the small space.

"I'm not going to make a speech," said Edward, raising a glass to his team. He didn't have to raise his voice, just the sound of him speaking made a hush descend over the room. "I just want to say thank you," he felt his eyes going misty and his throat constrict, the magnitude of what they had achieved suddenly hitting him, "thank you so much for what you have all done to get Cullen Industries to this stage." To a face, they looked at him, clearly expecting a speech. He crumbled under the weight of expectation and continued, emotionally. "In eighteen months time our new factory will open in Greenburgh bringing jobs and prosperity to an area that has seen one in four adults unemployed. The new factory," he continued, "will also triple production capacity for Cullen Industries, the only widget maker to source and produce widgets completely in the USA." The room erupted in applause and he used the distraction to slip out, not wanting anybody to see him less than one hundred percent composed.

"Knock, knock!" It was Jessica, the champagne held in a jaunty angle in her hand, the flush on her face suggesting that the bubbles were already going to her head. She was wearing a slinky black jersey wrap dress which Edward was sure, given the expanse of cleavage on show, should have had some sort of undergarment on underneath it. "Are you not coming back to the celebration?" she asked, one hand on her hip, silhouetted in the doorway.

"I don't think so," he said, "nobody can really let their hair down with the boss still there."

"Nonsense," said Jessica, pulling a clip out of her hair and letting her blonde curls cascade over her shoulders in illustration, "in fact," she purred, her voice suddenly much lower, "I've always wanted to let my hair down for you." He gulped, his mouth suddenly dry. He had dreamed of this moment for so long, dreamed of taking her on the desk or making her blow him under it while he was on an important call. "You're all alone this week, aren't you?" she asked, the bold and suggestive words tumbling out of her red painted lips, let loose by the champagne and the atmosphere. Somehow he managed to nod in response, too much of a deer in the headlights to think of an answer that didn't invite a filthy follow up. "Why don't I come home with you and keep the bed warm."

It was everything that he had dreamed of, everything he thought about when he was jacking off. The part of his brain that resided in his cock said yes but his head was thinking about getting home and logging onto the webcam.

"I'm sorry, Jessica," he said, as professionally as he could. "Thanks for thinking about me but I already have plans tonight." She shrugged her shoulders and smiled as if she didn't care either way but he could tell from the dejected slope of her shoulders as she walked away that she was upset.

* * *

Back at the house he abandoned the Jaguar as close to the front door as he could get, jumping out of the car as soon as it crunched to a halt, taking the steps two at a time and lurching through the front door.

"Flora? Are you there?" he bellowed.

"Yes, Mr Cullen," came a voice from the kitchen. Soft footsteps padded to the door, way too slow for his current mood. "Can I help you?"

"Are you nearly done?" he asked. His tone was brisk, bordering on rude.

"I guess so," she said, eyeing his wild eyes and impatient manner with unabashed interest. "I was going to fold the laundry in the dryer before I went home."

"Why don't you just go home?"

"But Mr Cullen," she said, folding her arms and looking at him with the slightly impudent manner of a housekeeper that has known her employer for many years. "Who's going to fold the laundry?"

"I'll do it," he said, firmly.

"Will you?" she replied, with a suppressed smile. "If I come in tomorrow and that laundry is still in there all creased then I won't be very happy."

"Flora," he raised his eyebrows and threw his hands to the air in mock exasperation, "I think I can manage to fold some sheets."

"If you say so," she said, clearly not convinced that this early finish wasn't going to cause her more work in the long term. "There's leftover pot roast in the fridge and I stocked up on beer today too because it was so low."

"I don't get any time alone nowadays," he said, in the wheedling tone that usually got her to do little things for him, "excuse me for enjoying living like a bachelor for a few days."

"Well," she said, pulling out her handbag from the domestic cupboard in the hallway, "as long as you don't make a mess like a bachelor."

"I wouldn't dare, boss" he said, putting two fingers to his forehead in a mock salute and holding the door open for her, "see you tomorrow."

Finally alone he turned the key in the door, resting his back upon its cool wood for a moment as relief coursed through him. His body felt hot, almost feverish, his mind filled with nothing but the thought of Bella and the package that she had sent him. Stopping only to grab a beer from the re-stocked fridge he took the house stairs two at a time and shut the door behind him.

The live feed was uninspiring. Bella and Jacob were eating what appeared to be salad on the white plastic table outside. A bottle of wine was open between them. He wished for a moment that he had been able to wire the whole place for sound so that he could tell what they were saying. It was almost worse watching them doing unremarkable, everyday things like eating and chatting. Edward couldn't remember the last time that himself and Bella had talked about anything that wasn't directly related to Renesmee, or decoration, or some social occasion that they both had to attend. Tearing himself away from the domestic scene he flicked open his second laptop and scrolled back to the footage recorded earlier in the day.

When he saw Bella bringing the package into the RV he slowed the recording back to normal speed. He was inordinately pleased with her obvious pleasure at each and every one of the gifts. His heart skipped a beat when she opened the vibrator, on the edge of his seat hoping that she would want to play with it straight away. He held his breath, his heart hammering against his ribcage, letting the air out in an audible whoosh when she pulled the pretty sundress over her head. Edward undid his top button and loosened his tie, never taking his eyes from the black and white feed on the screen.

Bella sat on the edge of the bed in her underwear. She had taken the bottle of lubricant with her and squeezed a small amount onto her right hand before rubbing it across the tip and shaft of the toy. She turned the controller on the bottom and Edward laughed out loud as she jumped, clearly not expecting the ferocity of the little machine. Bella laughed at herself, holding a hand to her chest in a perfect picture of somebody in momentary shock, before taking the toy in both hands and fiddling with the bottom until she found a more appropriate speed. That was Bella all over, sweet and clumsy, wearing her feelings on her face like a neon sign.

Something warm flared inside him, something that was gooier and stickier than the hard, fleeting, yet all encompassing heat of desire. It was tenderness, a feeling that had been driven into hiding by all their rowing and by his own desire to view other women on webcams. Yet with tenderness came melancholy, the sad realisation that her smile wasn't for him or even because of him. He pushed the uncomfortable feelings to one side, instead concentrating on her image on the webcam, the way that she touched herself, sliding the hard toy along her slit, concentrating on the clitoris and inserting the appendage itself only moments before her body convulsed in orgasm, teased to a finale by the ears of the attachment.

The live webcam, he noted, switching his attention as she slipped back into her underpants, was looking promising. The plates had been cleared and Jacob was making his way back to the house whilst Bella undressed for a shower. He left the room only to pick up a fresh beer and change into sweatpants and a T-shirt before settling back into his well worn chair for the evening.

As he sat back down he watched her slathering body lotion over her limbs then squeezing toothpaste onto her toothbrush. Out of nowhere a stab of doubt pierced his consciousnes. She wanted her body to feel smooth for Jacob. She wanted her breath to smell fresh for Jacob. What had he done? Why had he pushed her down this route? Automatically he picked up his phone and rang the one person that he could talk to about anything.

"Hello?" The voice was heavy with sleep.

"Emmett, it's Edward." He paused. "Were you sleeping?"

"Dude," came the voice, slightly hoarse, "I'm in London. Of course I'm sleeping, it's the middle of the freaking night."

"Oh, sorry." He pushed on. "Can you talk?" He thought he heard a soft female voice murmuring in the background.

"Not really." Emmett didn't elaborate.

"Are you with Rosalie?"

"No," replied Emmett in a clearer voice, "Rosalie and I broke up a while ago. Permanently." Edward snorted, aware that Emmett's loud clear words were intended for whatever woman he was with. Rosalie and Emmett were on and off like a strobe light. Bella called her the black widow yet the feisty little blonde had been the only female that had consistently lured Emmett back for more. "Are you Okay?" he asked, audibly coming to his senses a little more.

"Yes," said Edward.

"So," cut in Emmett, "you mean you're not Okay." Edward couldn't respond, the enormity of how badly wrong he was strangling the words in his throat. "Listen, I'm coming back on the red-eye tomorrow." Edward nodded silently. "Want me to come round on Friday?"

"Yeah," agreed Edward. He was sure that he could manage the situation himself for another thirty six hours.

"Laters," said Emmett.

"Laters," replied Edward, hanging up.

He turned his attention back to the screen where Bella was painting the dark lipstick that he liked but which she always proclaimed a little slutty onto her perfect lips. His stomach flipped a little at the sight of her, a strange mix of anguish and arousal. He had orchestrated this whole thing and she was going along with his every whim, so why did he feel so bad? He pushed the dark thoughts from his head, poured himself a drink from the decanter and tried to look forward to what he was going to see this evening.

The laundry remained in the dryer, crushed and forgotten.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hi guys, thanks for reading this far and thanks to all of you who have taken the time to write a review. Yes, there are a few swear words in there but I guess that means that what I'm writing is getting a reaction! Hi to anyone who has come thanks to a recommendation from AliciaW68. She's a friend with a filthy mind so if you've not read "That Night" or her current WIP "Deprivation" yet I suggest that you hot foot it across and take a look ASAP.**

 **Reminder:**

 **I've had a few comments now on the tagging of this story. To be clear it is a love triangle featuring Bella, Edward and Jacob. All characters feature prominently but I'm going to take this little trio to some pretty dark and despairing places so if that will be uncomfortable for you, don't read on. If you're looking for candy floss, fluff and unicorns then find something different to read. Also, I'm not going to disclose now who she ends up with because then there would be no point in reading the story!**

 **Just a heads up - my settings are such that guest reviews with curse words in them will be held for moderation. I believe in free speech so I will publish all reviews, whether they are positive or negative, unless the level of swearing is such that I think it really is too offensive for public consumption. Some of you have had really strong reactions to this story and whilst it can be a little unnerving to receive reviews filled with expletives I am actually genuinely pleased that my little story is generating a reaction!**

 **Again, to be clear, this is a marathon, not a sprint, and you're going to need to hang in there to get any kind of HEA.**

 **As always, no copyright infringements are intended. The characters are Stephanie Meyer's and I have just borrowed them.**

 **LadyLetters**

 **XXXX**

"You didn't have to knock..." started Jacob as he opened the door to the house but his words trailed off as he took her in, standing on the doorstep. She had covered up for the short walk so his eyes immediately alighted upon her dark, glossy lips and the heavily kohled eyes accentuated by the way that she had pinned her hair up and away from her face. "You look..." he gulped, trying to compose himself. "You look amazing."

"Thanks," she smiled, walking past him into the house. The black satin sleeves of her dressing gown, the one flimsy thing hiding the corset underneath, brushed his sleeve as she wafted past, raising goosebumps on his arms. "You don't look too shabby yourself." He was wearing tight dark jeans with a short sleeved check shirt.

"Oh, this old thing," he muttered, batting away her compliment, unable to take his eyes off her.

"Upstairs?" she asked, her stocking clad foot already on the bottom step.

"I guess so," he still appeared a little shell shocked.

"You've got champagne?" she asked.

"Of course," he replied, ducking off in the direction of the half finished kitchen, "I'll be right up."

She ascended the stairs slowly and as gracefully as she could, fancying herself a character in a Western, a Wild West pioneer woman earning her living by sleeping with rough, tough frontier types for money. In truth, Bella didn't want for anything, yet there was still an element of latent duress in the knowledge that Edward was watching, just enough to add additional frisson to the evening. She could say no. She could go back to Seattle right now and settle back into her safe life. She wasn't doing this to put food on the table. She was doing it to save her marriage. That was what she told herself as she reached the landing.

When she heard Jacob on the bottom step she turned around and smiled at him, catching his eye. Champagne bottle in one hand and two flutes in the other he paused for a moment, almost forgetting how to ascend stairs as he gazed up at her. As their eyes met he broke into a massive grin, creating effervescent bubbles in her stomach that suggested that there was an element of unacknowledged selfishness to her actions. Pushing that uncomfortable thought to the back of her head she continued into the bedroom, stoking her internal pioneer spirit as Jacob followed her up the stairs, taking them two at a time in his eagerness to get to her.

Despite her outward bravado her knees were wobbling as she collapsed onto the chaise longue that was strategically placed at the end of the huge, rough hewn log bed. She was happy that there was somewhere to sit that wasn't the bed as it gave her a brief reprieve from thoughts of what would follow. Nevertheless there was still a perceptible tremor in her hand as Jacob poured champagne into the flute.

"I don't understand you," he said, sitting down on the chaise beside her, one arm draped over the back, his body angled toward her.

"What do you mean," she said, looking intently at the bubbles in the glass rather than at him.

"One minute you're cool as a cucumber, wafting in her like the Queen of Sheba. The next," he continued, softer, a hand touching her shoulder, "your knees are shaking like a virginal schoolgirl." She tried to smile, but knew that it didn't reach her eyes. She just wasn't the kind of girl that could manage flippant. "You don't have to be scared of me," he said, softly.

"I'm not scared of you," she retorted a little too quickly. "Which is precisely why I'm scared of you." He looked confused but to his credit he let her continue in her own time. "I'm scared of the way that you make me feel. You," she lifted her index finger from the glass that she was gripping just a little too tightly and pointed directly at him, "have probably slept with loads of girls. For me it's only ever been Edward."

"What, ever?" He was taken aback.

"Don't sound so surprised," she said, a shy smile blooming on her face between two rapidly reddening cheeks, "we met when I was sixteen, how many lovers do you think that I managed to rack up before then?"

"Sorry," it was Jacob's turn to be embarrassed. "Edward did tell me that, I just kind of forgot." A smug smile spread over his face. "So that means," a thought was forming in his mind, "that I am your second ever lover." She nodded, embarrassed. "That's so hot," he breathed.

"Not very modern," said Bella, tucking a strand of stray hair behind her ear, still slightly embarrassed at his ardent gaze. "I'll bet that you have had loads of sex."

"Not loads..." he looked down at his hands, twiddling with his watch strap a moment. "Well, if we're being honest loads is probably a pretty accurate description..."

"You dark horse!" she exclaimed. "How many?"

"Really?" His face flushed, the reddest that she had seen it. She felt the balance of power shift slightly, her own confidence returning.

"Yes, really," she demanded. "You know everything about my sexual history. Surely I deserve to know something about your past if we're going to do this." He paused for a long moment, weighing up the possibilities.

"Okay. In the interests of honesty..."

"How many!" she interrupted, before he had a chance to finish. He looked into the air a moment, mouth slack as he racked his brains for the answer to that question. "Enough that you've got to think about it? Just how much of a man whore are you."

"Wait a minute," he said, spreading his arms in front of him in a pretence of self defence, "I never said anything about being a man-whore..."

"I'll be the judge of that," she smirked, "how many?"

"Twenty," he paused, counting on his fingers with the tip of his tongue protruding unconsciously from the side of his mouth. "Um, twenty three? Twenty four?"

"That's loads!" her voice rose almost an octave in surprise, her eyes widening involuntarily.

"Not really," he said, running a hand through his hair, releasing a fresh clean scent into the air," I'm twenty six, if you break that down over ten years it's only two girls a year. Does that sound like a lot for a young, single guy?"

"No, not really," she replied, conceding his point. "Have you never had a long-term girlfriend?"

"Not really," he said, his turn to avoid her gaze. "It always starts off well but I've just never..." He trailed off. "I guess that I've never met somebody that can keep my attention beyond those first few months." She nodded, giving him space to explain himself. "You know, it's all fun but then after a while you're sitting across from someone in a bar with nothing to say."

"Where do you meet these girls?" She was genuinely intrigued by the life of the single man.

"Oh, everywhere," he answered her question with a dismissive wave of his hand. "Bars, nightclubs. Sometimes women pass me their numbers if I'm working in the area."

"God, it's so easy for you," she said, suddenly aware that she was one of many, a notch on the bedpost of a serial womaniser.

"Easy, yeah," he said, in a low voice tinged with dejection. His body slumped forward as he twiddled the already empty glass in his hands. "Twenty something women but not one that sticks. I'm not sure I've ever actually even been in love."

"Oh my," she said, with a sudden flash of clarity, "you're a hopeless romantic, aren't you?"

"No, no, not at all," he said vigorously. "I'm just a man who likes women." He thought about it for a second then grimaced almost imperceptibly, a sheepish little smile appearing on his face. "A man who dreams of finding the right woman and buying a little house."

"With a green lawn and a white picket fence?" she offered. He nodded.

"A couple of kids running around, my beautiful wife pregnant with a third."

"I didn't know that guys thought like that."

"Of course we do!" he said. "Yes, there's this lad thing of sex and booze and sports and in all honesty it's good to get that stuff out of your system." He looked straight at her, fixing her with his big brown eyes. Something changed, something in that exact moment. When his eyes connected with hers they were more than a randomly thrown selection of cells and blood vessels coated in a pretty brown veneer. No, it was like she was looking into his soul and that in return he was looking directly into hers. She felt more naked in his gaze than if she had actually been naked. "In truth," he whispered, touching her chin with a feather light touch, "we all aspire to meet our soulmate, that one person that you imprint on and love until the day that you die." Bella was dumbfounded. How on earth could she respond to that?

"Look at us," said Jacob brightly, lifting the champagne bottle from the floor and refilling their glasses, "we're supposed to be having fun. Let's stop talking about such maudlin things and get the party atmosphere started again." She smiled back at him, grateful that he had changed the subject and saved her from having to think about his comments or make a response.

"Did you notice that I put a chandelier up?" asked Jacob, indicating the ceiling with a casual nod of his head. An antler chandelier, similar to the one in the bathroom but larger and more ornate hung directly above the bed. The A-frame ceiling of the bedroom was so high that she hadn't noticed it immediately.

"Jacob," she gasped, "it's beautiful." Hundreds of tiny LED bulbs were interspersed across the twisting, turning shape, diffusing a warm light across the room.

"Steady on," he said, with a self deprecating smile, "I didn't actually make it, I just hung it up."

"Still," she said. "It's beautiful."

"If you were my girl I'd probably light some candles," he said, still staring up at the chandelier, "but if we did that Edward wouldn't be able to see anything." She licked her lips nervously, having completely forgotten both that Edward was watching and that the whole purpose of this charade had been to titillate him from afar.

"Talking of which," she said, rising to her feet and letting the black silk wrap drop to the floor, "we should probably, you know..." At her movement he dropped his head from where it had been gazing at the chandelier to her form in front of him, resplendent in green peacock satin. He couldn't even speak. He just looked at her, opened his mouth, then held his breath, eventually letting it go.

"You," he said, trailing his eyes from the bottom of her stocking soles, up her long legs and across the curves of her torso that had been exaggerated and accentuated by the metal frame of the corset. "You," he started again but was unable to form anything meaningful.

"Don't think Jacob," she said, pushing him back against the chaise and straddling his lap, "just do." She dropped her lips to his and despite his brain's inability to form a coherent sentence, his body knew just the right response to the occasion. His arms were immediately around her, roaming across the length of the corset exploring the texture and the structure, learning each beautifully tailored component with his fingers. She dipped her head to kiss him, consciously narrowing her eyes then closing them completely as she got close to him to prevent that all knowing gaze piercing her armour again.

"Put on a good show," she purred, trailing hot kisses up his neck, breathing in the smell of hot male, peppered tonight with the spicy musk of cologne, and nipping his earlobe between her teeth. "I've seen the pussycat, tonight I want the wolf."

"The wolf?" he intoned, breaking into a wide, lascivious grin and grabbing her bottom, digging his fingers into it's fleshy mounds hard enough that she gasped and pulling her form closer to him. She could feel herself getting excited already, a slickness in her panties awaiting discovery. "You want the wolf?" He pulled one breast roughly from the confines of the corset until it jutted over the top. "Do you think that you're ready for that?" He pulled the other breast out of the corset and pulled her torso towards him, taking one swollen nipple in his mouth and nipping it between in his teeth in an erotic echo of what she had done with his earlobe only moments before. She gulped. She was egging him on, goading him. He took the nipple into his mouth, sucking softly at first then harder as she arched her back, grinding herself against the swelling that she could feel under the confines of his jeans. He sucked hard enough that she gasped, hitting the fine line between pain and pleasure.

"I'm ready," she whimpered, struggling to catch her breath as he toyed with her. Releasing her nipple from his mouth he stood up, taking her with him as if she weighed nothing. She wrapped her legs around his waist and his arms around his neck for stability, enjoying the feeling of hot, solid man, the scratch of stubble against her soft, moistured skin. He walked three steps to the bedroom wall and pushed her against the wall. The rough hewn logs scratched her back as Jacob pinned her with his body. She wound her hands in his hair, burying her hands and enjoying the fresh clean scent in her nose as he kissed her neck savagely, licking, sucking and grazing it with his teeth. Desperate suddenly to have his bee-stung lips on hers she grabbed a handful of hair and pulled his head back roughly. Without words he understood what she was trying to tell him and kissed her, hard and without skill, a primal response to the need growing deep within her.


	7. Chapter 7

**Reminder:**

 **I've had a few comments now on the tagging of this story. To be clear it is a love triangle featuring Bella, Edward and Jacob. All characters feature prominently but I'm going to take this little trio to some pretty dark and despairing places so if that will be uncomfortable for you, don't read on. If you're looking for candy floss, fluff and unicorns then find something different to read. Also, I'm not going to disclose now who she ends up with because then there would be no point in reading the story!**

 **Just a heads up - my settings are such that guest reviews with curse words in them will be held for moderation. I believe in free speech so I will publish all reviews, whether they are positive or negative, unless the level of swearing is such that I think it really is too offensive for public consumption. Some of you have had really strong reactions to this story and whilst it can be a little unnerving to receive reviews filled with expletives I am actually genuinely pleased that my little story is generating a reaction!**

 **Again, to be clear, this is a marathon, not a sprint, and you're going to need to hang in there to get any kind of HEA.**

 **As always, no copyright infringements are intended. The characters are Stephanie Meyer's and I have just borrowed them.**

 **As always, enjoy, and thanks to everyone who has taken the time to review.**

 **LadyLetters**

XXXX

"Sound," growled Edward, checking that the speakers on his laptop were wired up correctly for the tenth time in five minutes. "There's meant to be sound." He gritted his teeth and punched the nearest thing to him in anger. His balled fist hit the corkboard and a picture of a mermaid, complete with glued on sequins, came unattached and fluttered to the floor, roughly ripped holes at the top two corners where the pins had been. Suddenly deflated he picked the sugar paper picture up from the floor and pinned it back in pride of place on the notice board.

He sank back into the desk and turned his attention back to the screen. As promised the feed from the bedroom was colour and pretty good quality, however there was no sound. Bella and Jacob had been talking for ages and he really, really wanted to know what they were talking about. It had started so well, Bella surprising both him and Jacob by dragging the surprised looking craftsman straight upstairs to the bedroom, but now things had slowed down and he couldn't tell why.

Suddenly Bella was on top of the other man, straddling and kissing him in a manner which he could only describe as aggressive. Hell, he thought, smiling to himself, I didn't know she had it in her. He certainly couldn't tell without sound what had been the catalyst. Her breasts looked amazing jutting out over the corset from where Jacob had crudely scooped them.

Wow, Jacob must really be strong, he thought, trying not to be impressed that the other man had scooped his wife up so easily. His cock was already rock hard in the confines of his sweatpants but he resisted the urge to touch himself. Jacob and Bella looked like they were in no hurry as the younger man pushed his wife against the wall and he didn't want to peak too soon himself. Fascinated, he watched as Jacob effortlessly threw her onto the bed before dragging those gorgeous peacock green panties off in one swift movement. The cheeky beggar put them into his back pocket!

Fascinated, he watched the other man join Bella on the bed, still fully clothed. Jacob took one of her long stocking clad legs and pushed it to the side with his arm, pinning the other leg flat to the bed with the weight of his body before burying his head in her pussy. She lay still at first, eyes closed, the biting of her lip and the slight arching of her back the only indication that she was enjoying his ministrations. He could tell, even without sound, that her breathing was becoming ragged. Her body started to buck and convulse, her legs in their crude scissor position trying to close, yet he held firm, his head moving rhythmically, using his strength and bodyweight to keep her still. She grabbed his hair in great rough handfuls as she came, silent words spilling from her mouth. He relaxed for a moment in his chair, expecting a short interlude but Jacob continued, licking and sucking on even as she shook her head and begged him to stop. Dude's got style, he thought, with grudging appreciation as he leaned forward in his seat again to get a closer look. Moments later she stilled a little, balling the duvet in her fists and closing her eyes, yelling a silent orgasm again as Jacob finally pushed two rough fingers into her.

XXXX

"Was that OK?" Jacob asked, observing her through long dark lashes lying on his side with his head propped up one arm. The slightly self satisfied smirk that covered his face along with her juices suggested that he already knew the answer to that question but was fishing for a compliment regardless.

"Yes," managed Bella, still drunk from the massive second orgasm that had rocked her body mere moments before. Her breasts and forehead were slick with sweat and her ribcage was moving visibly as her body tried to get precious oxygen back in. "A hundred times, yes," she said, reinforcing the point but still unable to move from the inelegant starfish position that she still lay in.

"Well, you'd better get your breath back soon," he said, in a low, sensual murmur, "because it's still early." She swallowed, trying to process what that would mean for her body, eyes pointed above her but not quite ready to focus. Jacob's weight left the mattress but she couldn't muster the strength to glance at him before he plopped heavily down beside her again just a moment later.

"Jacob!" she murmured, the finger that was the tip of her starfish brushing hot male flesh. "You're naked." Her mental interest in this turn of events fortified her body and with some effort she rolled over onto her side, propping her head on arm in a mirror of his own position.

XXXX

Was Jacob trimmed, down there? He twiddled with the camera, trying to get a better view of the other man's junk. Hmmm, he seemed to be. Was that a thing nowadays? Not as long as mine though, thought Edward, consoling himself with a smirk that nobody else could see. Pulling his sweatpants out at the waist to sneak a peek, he decided that if he trimmed that forest back like Jacob had it would probably look even bigger. Fair play to the man, he knew how to work his assets.

Bringing his eyes back to the screen he noticed that Bella now had Jacob's assets firmly in hand.

She was exploring every inch of his body, first with her hand as she lay on her side, then with her tongue and her lips as she recovered strength of body. The other man soon lay flat on his back with his legs dangling off the side of the bed and Bella crouched over him. He noted with interest that Jacob waved her away as she got to his junk, clearly intent on returning the favour. With a wave of a hand and a few words Bella was suddenly on her feet. Jacob scooted to the edge of the bed, his legs spreading wide, his huge erection clearly visible. Hating himself, Edward tried to zoom in on it again, compulsively comparing it to his own. Was Jacob's thicker? It was hard to tell. Apart from the quick fumble where he had technically lost his virginity before he met Bella there hadn't been any other women so he really didn't know where he stood in the length versus girth debate. On screen Bella stood in between Jacob's legs, his back to her, and used a hand on each powerful thigh to lower herself onto him. The first few movements were tentative however as she found her rhythm, pushing herself up and down in firmer, more confident strokes, he saw Jacob's eyes close, giving in to the sensation.

XXXX

Jacob wrapped his hands around her body and lifted her up effortlessly, his cock still deep within her. Turning one hundred and eighty degrees, he placed her face down on the bed, pushing into her a few times, testing the position.

"Oh," she cried, distraught when his hard length exited her.

"Scoot forward," he said, urgently, "keep flat." She didn't entirely know what he was getting at but the way that he was ordering her around thrilled her and brought a fresh flush to her already slick pussy. Obeying him without question she scooted forward until she was flat on her front and he was immediately on top of her, spreading her legs urgently with his knee, pushing his cock into her then nudging her legs closed, placing his left, then right leg on the outside of her thighs.

"You feel so tight like this," he moaned. She could barely respond, his cock feeling even bigger then before inside her with her legs pressed tight shut. She pressed one cheek into the sheet, arms loosely above her head gripping the duvet as he made tiny, yet exquisite movements. He wasn't so much thrusting into her as pushing her hips away from him, further into the soft mattress, before allowing her to slide back up his cock, buoyed by the weight of the mattress below returning to it's usual form. She closed her eyes and gave herself over to sensation, allowing Jacob to control things and relinquishing her pleasure entirely to him.

She felt her breathing quicken, a tiny moan caught in her throat and all of a sudden the small exquisite movements weren't nearly enough.

"Jacob," she squeaked but before she could articulate what she wanted he pulled her up onto all fours, plunging his cock deep within her in a stroke so long and unexpected that she cried out loud.

"Are you Okay?" he asked, a flash of the gentleman reappearing, a soothing balm to his rough exterior.

"More than Okay," she all but howled. "Fuck, don't stop now!" He had never heard her curse and the unexpected language and the rawness with which she snarled her needs brought a fresh twitch of blood to his cock, already dangerously close to explosion. She moved forward to support her body weight on her left forearm so that her right hand could snake between her legs to play with her clit as he thrust into her.

He found his rhythm almost immediately, plunging into her as she encouraged him, pushing herself back against him to meet each thrust, willing him deeper into her. She turned her head to look at him over one shoulder and saw herself reflected in the dark pools of his eyes, almost unrecognisable, her hair mostly escaped from the elegant updo, a sheen of sweat on her red face, her eyes dark pools communicating only primal need and her mouth contorted into an alarmingly filthy smile.

He grabbed her semi loose hair and pulled her vertical, biting her shoulder as his arms snaked around her, one big hand rubbing her swollen clitoris, the other roughly grabbing one of her breasts, eliciting a delighted howl as he rolled the bullet hard nipple skilfully between his fingers. She turned her head to the side and their lips touched, a mashing of skin and teeth and wet and heat before he pushed her back down to the bed again, resuming the delicious thrusting. She was close and he could tell, preternaturally aware of her elevated breathing and the way that her hand rubbed mindlessly across her clit. He took a firm grip of her hips and pushed even harder, making each backstroke longer to give more purchase, his balls hitting her with an audible thwack at the zenith and as her breathing reached a telltale crescendo he licked his thumb and pushed it rudely into the puckered rose of her bottom.

"No!" she cried, even as her body racked with orgasm, convulsions gripping his cock and his thumb, an anguished cry after anguished cry escaping her shaking fame. As the convulsions started to subside he pulled out and shot his hot sticky load onto her ass and lower back.

"Sorry," he whispered, moments later, "cum everywhere's not really my thing but I know that Edward's watching at home."

"Of course," she said, looking back at him, face softer now. "Could you...?" Chuckling, he picked up his discarded boxer shorts and wiped the sticky mess from her. She relaxed her body down onto her front, sinking into the mattress, the thought of Edward looking at her making her not want to look at Jacob. He was still behind her and she felt his hands on the corset, undoing each of the hook and eye fastenings at her back before spreading it wide. The heavy boning had pushed into her flesh with the twisting and turning of her body and he rubbed each mark, caressing it with soft soothing fingers before lifting her body an inch off the bed to slide the garment out from under her. She felt his hands on her thighs, rolling down the stockings.

"I love these," he laughed, almost to himself, his voice more natural now. "If you had come in with those ones that have the seams up the back I might have shot my load there and them."

"Pervert," she murmured into the sheet.

XXXX

Edward's hand pumped up and down his cock, eyes fixed to the screen. He couldn't believe the way that Jacob was handling his wife and worst of all he couldn't believe that she was enjoying it. He couldn't hear what was going on but the look on her face made it abundantly obvious that she was enjoying the proceedings. It wasn't like the porn that he liked to watch, this was real and there was something electric in the air, perceptible even across a video link, that transcended simply the base act of putting one part of a body into another. Wait a minute, was he... He zoomed the camera closer, confirming that Jacob indeed had a meaty thumb inserted into his writhing wife's behind. He couldn't hold it any longer, cumming into his hand. Yet, even as the hot spurts off semen left his body a tear already trickled down his cheek. They were finished on screen but he couldn't tear his eyes away, a green cloud of jealousy descending on him as he watched the tender way that Jacob massaged the marks that the corset had left and draped the duvet over her when she appeared to have fallen asleep. He was slightly relieved when after a brief shower Jacob curled up under a blanket on the chaise longue at the base of the bed, leaving Bella to sleep undisturbed, still on her front where she had collapsed.

In his own bed he tossed and turned, sleep elusive. The jealous part of him had retreated following his moment of vulnerability and he was inclined to put his impromptu tears down to a moment of madness and a hormonal response to one of the most intense orgasms of his life. Bella was clearly loving her sexual escapades with Jacob and he was ridiculously excited by watching them. This was a once in a lifetime interlude for both of them and although his gut instinct had been to drive up there straight away and claim her however the rational part of his brain suggested that as he had orchestrated the event that he would just be asking for trouble. Holding onto the knowledge that he was still the puppet master in this scenario he rolled over into the foetal position and fell into a disturbed sleep.


	8. Chapter 8

**Good evening all! Chapter Eight follows for your reading pleasure. It is a tangled web that our trio of lovers are weaving however it is still going to take a while to reach a resolution. Thanks for the views, the favourites, the follows and for those of you who have taken the time to leave a review.**

 **Reminder:**

 **I've had a few comments now on the tagging of this story. To be clear it is a love triangle featuring Bella, Edward and Jacob. All characters feature prominently but I'm going to take this little trio to some pretty dark and despairing places so if that will be uncomfortable for you, don't read on. If you're looking for candy floss, fluff and unicorns then find something different to read. Also, I'm not going to disclose now who she ends up with because then there would be no point in reading the story!**

 **Just a heads up - my settings are such that guest reviews with curse words in them will be held for moderation. I believe in free speech so I will publish all reviews, whether they are positive or negative, unless the level of swearing is such that I think it really is too offensive for public consumption. Some of you have had really strong reactions to this story and whilst it can be a little unnerving to receive reviews filled with expletives I am actually genuinely pleased that my little story is generating a reaction!**

 **Again, to be clear, this is a marathon, not a sprint, and you're going to need to hang in there to get any kind of HEA.**

 **As always, no copyright infringements are intended. The characters are Stephanie Meyer's and I have just borrowed them.**

 **LadyLetters**

 **XXXX**

Bella awoke with a start. It was dark and completely still, not a single noise interrupting the peace of the velvet night. Was she alone? Concentrating, she heard the sound of heavy breathing coming from the foot of the bed. Blinking, she waited for her eyes adjust to the light, finally making out Jacob's huge form curled up on the chaise longue at her feet.

"Jacob," she whispered. He stirred but didn't wake. He looked ridiculous shoehorned into the tiny space. "Jacob," she whispered, touching his arm. His eyes opened to tiny slits, still heavy with sleep, "come to bed."

"Too intimate," he muttered, eyes slipping back closed, "you said." Her stomach twisted a little in her gut, knowing that he was sleeping there just to respect her wishes.

"Don't be stupid," she said, poking him again, harder, "it's cold and that chaise was definitely not meant for sleeping in." She scooted across the bed, pulling one corner of the duvet up in an effort to make it look enticing. "Come on." Too tired not to comply he slithered off the chaise onto the floor, before heaving himself up and sliding between the covers. Without asking he snuggled up behind her, wrapping an arm firmly around her waist before resuming his deep breathing. The last thought before she drifted off into a contented sleep, safe in his warm arms, was that she really should get him to roll over and give her some space in case Edward was watching.

XXXX

"Hello again," said Bella, as the same khaki clad senior citizen as the previous day stepped out of the delivery truck. "Twice in two days?"

"Yes, ma'am," he smiled, glancing over her shoulder at the view, "not a great hardship in my book."

"Is that for me?" she pointed at the cardboard box in his hand, similar in size and shape to yesterday.

"Yes ma'am," he handed her the electronic screen, waiting while she scribbled an electronic signature on it. "Have a great day," This time she didn't watch his painful about turn, just took the package straight into the RV, pierced the tape with the knife and ripped the box open. Like yesterday there were several parcels wrapped in pink paper with the tell-tale sticker. She ripped open the first package, finding a flimsy red lace garment within. Smiling, she lifted it up to the light to examine it, but her smile faded as the full extent of the outfit became clear. It was a red lace bodysuit, split at the crotch and across the breasts. Unlike the exquisite lingerie that he had sent yesterday this was crude. The quality of the garment was still good, testament to the fact that it had come from the same high end establishment, yet to her eyes it was cheap and tacky.

Once, Bella had borrowed Edward's laptop, grabbing the nearest computer in order to check the next term dates for Renesmee's school. She genuinely hadn't been prying but when she clicked back on the internet browser it took her to a hardcore porn page. She had watched in fascination and disgust as a woman in a cheap crotchless bodystocking had deep throated a well hung man. The man had pushed her head further onto his cock and when he pulled away hot sticky vomit welled from her mouth, tears pouring down her face taking the thick layers of mascara and eyeliner with it in a flood of dark anguish. She wondered what sort of monster she had married. How could her sweet, loving husband watch this kind of thing, women treated as objects, used and abused?

Bella threw the garment to the side, tainted as it was by her knowledge of his darker sexual preferences. Pausing for a moment, she pushed the box to the side, deciding to save the remainder of the contents for later.

XXXX

It had been on their honeymoon, three nights in the Cascade Mountains in a smelly cabin belonging to one of Charlie's fishing buddies, when Edward and Bella had first found the clearing. Although she was six months pregnant she was eighteen, healthy and fit, and they roamed the mountain trails all day, flushed with love and the excitement of their first few days as Mr and Mrs Cullen.

"I thought this was an urban legend," breathed Edward, as the thick trees suddenly opened up to a lush, green meadow thick with wildflowers, bathed in golden sunlight. The thick insulation of the trees made the meadow almost silent, only the low buzz of bees and the occasional exclamations of the birds of prey soaring overhead breaking the exquisite silence. Edward too, was exquisite, cutting a long lean figure in dark hiking trousers and a white T-shirt, his messy blonde hair pushed back from his delicately chiselled face.

"If you thought it was an urban legend," said Bella, grabbing his hand and pulling him a few feet further into the mountain paradise to look into his hazel eyes, "then why have we spent the last two days looking for it?"

"Trying to tire you out," said Edward, with a filthy smile, his pronounced eye teeth giving his grin a predatory quality.

"Not happening," she shook her head with vehemence, "I'll never get enough of you." She dropped his hand and waded into the thick carpet of long grass, her hands upstretched towards the sun. "It's so beautiful!" She pulled her backpack from her back and lowered it to the ground, pulling her water bottle from a side pocket and taking a long drink before handing the bottle to Edward. "How did you say that you heard about this place?"

"Your drunk Uncle Phil," said Edward. "I couldn't get him to shut up about it at the wedding when he heard that we were coming here. Apparently in the frontier days it was used to hide stolen cattle." He took a couple of drinks then handed the bottle back to Bella before taking his own, much larger, rucksack from his back and putting in on the ground. "Choose a place for us to picnic," he said, grinning at the expanse of green in front of them.

"I choose the middle," said Bella, pointing to the middle of the field, "right there."

"Edward," said Bella, after the picnic as they lay on the rug with her head resting on his chest, "I'm scared." The elastic silence stretched between them.

"Me too," he admitted, and they both knew that it was the impending baby and not the isolation of the mountain beauty spot that they were talking about.

"Will it be alright?" Her voice was small.

"Yes," he replied in a soft voice, "I'll make it."

"But, Edward, how? I've had to give up my scholarship and I know you've got big dreams but a baby and a wife will be a major drag."

"Don't you see," he said, calmly, stroking her hair with a proprietary hand, "it's not my dreams any more, they're our dreams." He kissed the top of her head. "The baby's coming a little bit earlier than planned, so the hell what?"

"People are waiting on us to fail, that's what," she sighed. "The school gossips, the way that Charlie looked at me with those big sad eyes when I told him that he was going to be a Grandaddy, the sympathetic glances at the wedding, everybody is waiting on us to fail."

"Then we won't fail," he said, the smile audible in his voice even though she couldn't see it. "So, this wasn't the life plan, big deal, I'm the happiest man alive right now. I've just married the woman of my dreams and you have to trust me, I've got big enough plans for all of us and I'll never let us fail."

"Never?" she asked, a tremor in her voice giving away the fragility of her request.

"Never," he said, loud enough to echo around the thick walls of the meadow. The noise and the radiance of Edward's certainty had bathed her in a light warmer than the sun overhead. They spent the rest of the afternoon in the clearing, lying stretched out on the blanket and doing nothing more strenuous than talking about their plans for the future and their love for each other. It had been the best day of her honeymoon. Hell, it had been one of the best days of her life.

XXXX

Ten years later it was safe to say that the clearing was not as she remembered. The sun was high in the sky when she reached the meadow yet as she stepped into the space was chill and the air felt sparse, somehow not as nourishing as the air lower down the mountain. She swung her rucksack onto the ground, touching the sweaty patch on her lower back in disgust. She planned to spend the afternoon here, reminiscing and thinking about her future but it already felt too cold. Too stubborn to go back yet after the strenuous hike she unwrapped the sweater from around her waist and dropped it onto the damp grass, following it immediately with her bottom. She took a drink from the water bottle and considered getting her sandwich out before deciding against it.

She didn't want to lean back on the grass so she wrapped her arms around her knees, keeping points of contact with the cold ground to a minimum.

Edward, she thought, with a grimace. It was Edward that brought the sun and the light to this place. It just wasn't the same without him. The thickness of the trees, far from being a protective cocoon, felt sinister, shading secrets and predators in their silent protective arms. The birds of prey, whether by design or a figment of her imagination soared above, circling like kites with invisible strings tethered to her exact location. The soothing background buzz of bees that she remembered had been replaced by an ominous silence, the occasional sinister insect snarl passing too close to her ear making her jump by it's very infrequency. The heady scent of flowers and sun and grass and Edward had been replaced by the dank smell that came after a downpour when dark creatures still slithered along the wet leaves and paths.

Where was he? Why hadn't he come as soon as she had left the note telling him that she knew? She knew that at least part of his motivation had been her happiness. The elaborate plan, making sure that Jacob was clear of STD's; he had done everything to make her experience safe. Maybe he was hoping that she would sleep her dissatisfaction out of her system and come back happier. What he didn't seem to understand was that he was the source of her dissatisfaction, just as he had once been the source of her happiness. Did he have any idea how hurtful it was when she tried to initiate sex and he feigned sleep only for her to find the bed empty only hours later? When they did have sex it was always in the back of her mind that he must be comparing her to those girls that he looked at on the internet.

Bella wanted to feel that they were participating in the process of love-making together, not that he was fucking her. She closed her eyes for a moment, inhaling the damp bitter air and wondering whether he was disappointed with what he had seen on the screen so far. Was he expecting more? Was he expecting kinky sex in every flavour of the spectrum and getting vanilla? Mentally she kicked herself for going through with the whole stupid charade with Jacob. It had to finish.

Edward didn't deserve for his wife to be unfaithful.

Jacob didn't deserve her using him for the camera.

She didn't deserve a husband who chased an elusive, horny dream and ignored the sexually frustrated creature that was right under his nose.

She had to face the truth, her marriage was over. Edward was probably wining and dining Jessica at this very moment with Bella safely out of the way. She considered leaving today, heading back to Seattle and having it out with him but couldn't quite muster the energy to face it. One more night, she thought, one more night of escape and then I'll face up to things and make some real decisions.

XXXX

"Is something burning?" asked Jacob, hammer still poised in his hand as he followed the scent of the acrid smoke.

"Yes," said Bella, with a sudden burst of gaiety, "I had a couple of things that I needed to burn." She poked at the metal wastepaper bin, stoking the red flames licking out the top.

"What are you burning?" he asked, sniffing the smoke a little gingerly, "it smells like tyres or rubber..."

"Oh no," she said brightly, with a smile that she knew bordered on manic but that she didn't have the wherewithal to hide, "just a few personal papers." He nodded, not quite sure what to make of her, keeping his eyes on her as he backed slowly away to where he was working in front of the cabin. Back at the cabin he angled himself so that he could keep an eye on her and the dancing flames.

Upon returning from the hike she had plucked up the courage to open the rest of the items in the box. The first was a latex catsuit, open in the crotch. The second was a massive soft rubber butt plug. She would have thought it was a dildo without the lurid writing on the packaging describing exactly what she was expected to do with it. The third was a ball gag, massive and round. She gazed at it in wonder, trying to fathom the erotic appeal of struggling for breath and being unable to communicate. Spreading the haul out in front of her she realised that each and every item was designed to do one thing; titillate. Yet it seemed to Bella that the person they were designed to titillate was Edward. Why had he chosen these items? Did he want to reduce her to the base level of those webcam girls and their melted eye make-up, every click taking away another piece of their soul? Did he wish that she was waiting, ready with a fake smile and spread legs to do everything that he wanted for the right price?

She gathered the offending underwear and sex toys in her arms and dropped them into the metal wastepaper bin. Somehow it didn't seem enough, she couldn't bear for them to stay in the RV. She took them outside but the only place to deposit rubbish was in the massive skip which Jacob was filling with construction waste and there was no way that she could put those things in there.

Spying the barbecue she pushed her way back into the RV and pulled the lighter fluid and matches from a cupboard. Once soaked, the underwear went up immediately and as the first wild flames dyed down a little she smelled the rubberised surface of the toy going up too.

Edward, she thought, laughing maniacally as she stared up at where she knew the sole outdoor camera was situated, I hope that you receive my message loud and clear.


	9. Chapter 9

**Happy Friday night guys! I'm doing NaNoWriMo this month and writing like a freaking demon to try to hit my 50,000 word target.**

 **Thanks for the views, reviews and general support for my little love triangle. Thanks in particular to AlisonJG for the pre reading and the support. Thanks also to AliciaW68 (check out her stories too) for introducing me to the fan fiction world!**

 **Reminder: I've had a few comments now on the tagging of this story. To be clear it is a love triangle featuring Bella, Edward and Jacob. All characters feature prominently but I'm going to take this little trio to some pretty dark and despairing places so if that will be uncomfortable for you, don't read on. If you're looking for candy floss, fluff and unicorns then find something different to read. Also, I'm not going to disclose now who she ends up with because then there would be no point in reading the story!**

 **Just a heads up - my settings are such that guest reviews with curse words in them will be held for moderation. I believe in free speech so I will publish all reviews, whether they are positive or negative, unless the level of swearing is such that I think it really is too offensive for public consumption. Some of you have had really strong reactions to this story and whilst it can be a little unnerving to receive reviews filled with expletives I am actually genuinely pleased that my little story is generating a reaction!**

 **Again, to be clear, this is a marathon, not a sprint, and you're going to need to hang in there to get any kind of HEA.**

 **As always, no copyright infringements are intended. The characters are Stephanie Meyer's and I have just borrowed them.**

 **Lady Letters**

 **XXXX**

"Edward, can I have a word a moment?" It was Kevin, the Operations Manager. The older man had worked his way up from the factory floor and always looked a little crumpled to Edward's eyes but today he looked positively exhausted. The top button of his short sleeved shirt was undone and his loosened tie sat at a jaunty angle somewhere below it.

"Of course Kevin," said Edward, beckoning the other man to come into his office and sit down. He pushed the screen of his laptop flush with his desk, indicating his full attention.

"It's Greenburgh," Kevin began with a grimace, "we've hit a snag."

"What sort of snag?" asked Edward, suddenly alert.

"Asbestos."

"What?" exclaimed Edward. "We've paid out a bloody fortune in surveys for that site. Surely one of those reports would have picked up the asbestos?"

"I've been on the phone all morning," said Kevin, shaking his head. "The assessments were all done as samples. The sample areas were clear however it seems that some of the older parts of the factory was converted rather than rebuilt and those parts are riddled with asbestos. The demolition crew has had to halt work."

"Well," thought Edward, aloud, "can we claim on the professional indemnity insurance of the surveyor that missed this? After all, it's a major screw up."

"Maybe," replied Kevin with a shrug of the shoulders, "but it could take months or even years to pursue a claim. The main contractor needs $250,000 now to get in a specialist sub-contractor to start the job. If they don't get that money by Monday then they'll walk off site."

"They can't!" cried Edward, slamming his fist on the table in anger, "that would be a breach of contract."

"I've been over the paperwork," said Kevin resignedly, "the build contract was negotiated based on a straightforward demolition. They would be perfectly within their rights to walk off site now that an undisclosed health and safety issue has been unearthed."

"I'll get them the money," said Edward, with a frsutrated sigh. There was no other way. The contractor had been the cheapest of the three tenders but even with government grant funding the cost was still stretching Cullen Industries to the very limit of their financial capacity. He couldn't afford to pay a more expensive contractor. Hell, he thought, doing some quick sums in his head, paying the extra $250,000 would almost completely deplete their cash reserves. He couldn't afford for anything else to go wrong.

"By Monday?" asked Kevin.

"By Monday," affirmed Edward. A thought struck him. "What are the contractors going to do for the rest of the day?"

"They were going to clear up early today anyway," said Kevin, "on account of the storm." He cocked his head towards the glass window behind Edward.

"The storm?" When Edward turned his head and squinted at the small gaps between the horizontal blinds he saw storm clouds gathering on the horizon. He could have sworn it was bright June sunshine the last time that he looked outside.

"It's been all over the news," said Kevin, with an undisguised quizzical look, "how could you have missed it?"

"I've been pretty busy," said Edward, swivelling forward again and opening the laptop screen in an obvious dismissal of the other man. "Don't worry, I'll get the funds transferred this afternoon."

"Thanks," replied Kevin, standing up to leave. However, as he reached the door of the office he paused for a moment, one hand on the door frame. "Boss?" he asked, tentatively.

"Yes?" Edward looked up from his laptop.

"I don't want to overstep my position but you look awful." Unconsciously Edward lifted a hand to his unshaven jawline, slightly shocked by the rasp of stubble on his fingers and suddenly aware of the dark shadows that he was wearing under his eyes.

"Not sleeping with Bella away," he said with a self deprecating smile.

"I'm the same," replied the older man, an obvious flush of relief blooming over his face at the thought that Edward's unkempt appearance was not down to anything more serious, "I think it will be great when Marjorie takes the girls away to their grandparents for a few days but after the first night I just find myself rattling around the house, missing them like crazy." Edward nodded his agreement. In truth he was missing both Bella and Renesmee. "You'll try to get some proper rest at the weekend?"

"I will," nodded Edward. "Of course, I'll sleep better when I know that the contractors are back on site on Monday."

"Me too," said Kevin with a roll of his eyes.

Edward looked at his watch. It was two o'clock. He longed to get home to watch Bella on the webcam but the issue with the contractor was going to engage him for the rest of the afternoon as he arranged with the finance team to make the payment and went over the impacts of the adjusted timings and increased costs. Greenburgh was a small town and news of the stoppage would leak out quickly, he would also have to get Jessica onto the case, releasing an honest press release with a positive spin which would limit reputational damage to the project. There was too much to do here to simply down tools and indulge his fantasies. Putting her deliberately to the back of his mind he picked up the phone and started to assemble his management team.

XXXX

"Shall we go out tonight?"

"Sorry?" Bella was jolted from her daydream. She hadn't even heard Jacob approach her as she sat at the white plastic table and chairs, watching the last spluttering of smoke as the fire finally died in the bottom of the wastepaper basket.

"Shall we go out tonight?" he asked, patiently, pulling out another one of the plastic chairs and sitting down opposite her. She lifted her head from where it had been resting heavily on one hand, her gaze taking in the length of his body as he stretched his legs out in front of him and clasped his hands behind his head.

"Where?" she asked, feeling slightly confused yet still strangely interested in the tantalising rips in his work jeans and the curve of his biceps.

"Well," he said, with a winning smile that she couldn't help but return as her gaze stopped greedily drinking in his dirt covered form and alighted on his face, meeting his amused eyes, "there's only one town within forty miles so I'd say that would be a pretty good destination."

"Okay smartass," she retorted, "what's the plan?"

"Well, I don't know about you," he began, "but I'm feeling a bit claustrophobic today." She nodded. The atmosphere of the day had changed since she found the clearing in the late morning. There were storm clouds in the distance and the air was charged with something indefinable, a restless wind that lifted dandelion heads and dust from the grass verges in swirling patterns, a thickening of the atmosphere that made the air feel thicker and the tiny hairs on her arms stand to attention.

"Me too," she said, noticing as she met his big dark eyes that they flicked unconsciously across to where the outdoors CCTV camera was located. Clearly it wasn't only Bella who was starting to feel the pressure of their constant presence.

"I thought that we could get a bite to eat?" Despite the intimate moments that they had shared his tone was still tentative, a high school boy asking his crush on a date.

"What about the storm?" she frowned.

"Don't worry," replied Jacob, "we'll take my pick-up. It's a four by four with huge rubber tyres so it's probably the safest place to be in a storm anyway."

"It's a date," agreed Bella.

"A date," said Jacob with a wink as he stood up again, tucking the white chair neatly back under the table. "I've got a few things to secure before the storm comes and then I'll jump in the shower. Ready in an hour?"

"Sounds great." She watched his form as he walked away enjoying the slope of his bottom in the soft denim and the broad planes of his shoulders accentuated by the black wife beater meeting between the blades.

Stop it Bella, she thought, mentally berating herself for her weakness. This isn't fair on anyone. Let's have a nice time tonight and weather out the storm. In the morning I will head back to Seattle to face the music.

XXXX

"Read it again," said Edward, firmly.

"Work at Cullen Industries latest site in Greenburgh," began Jessica, the tart tone indicating to Edward that she was not pleased at having to recite it again with yet another of his minor tweaks incorporated, "halted on Friday due to the discovery of asbestos in some areas of the original building."

"Go on," he said, with a flourish of his long fingers.

"Specialist sub-contractors have been engaged and will start work immediately to make the site safe. Edward Cullen, CEO, has confirmed that despite the minor setback the scheme is still scheduled to complete within eighteen months as originally envisaged."

"Perfect," said Edward, relaxing back into his chair. "Can you get it out this afternoon?"

"Not a problem," said Jessica, closing her hardback notebook with a definitive little bang. She almost stood to leave but paused for a moment, sinking back into the chair. "You know that Mike Newton at the Greenburgh Examiner will use this as an excuse to write another editorial about how Cullen Industries will never achieve this regeneration?"

"That douche," said Edward through gritted teeth, eliciting a smile from Jessica. "When is he going to stop holding a grudge?"

XXXX

The night that he met Bella she had been Mike Newton's date. Forks and Greenburgh were both small towns with correspondingly small high schools and there had been great excitement when the head teachers decided to hold a joint Spring Fling in Forks' newly built sports hall. He and Emmett had been sitting in Emmett's truck talking tactics when they had seen two of the Greenburgh girls arrive, trailing their dates behind them as they walked across the car park to get to the hall.

"Hot blonde," growled Emmett, indicating the fiery figure that he now knew to be Jessica.

"Hot brunette," murmured Edward, taking in the tall, elegant form of her friend. The brunette was wearing an emerald green formal dress with high heels, her dark hair swept back in an elegant updo and tiny diamonte earrings twinkling in her earlobes. In the heels she was almost as tall as her date who tried to sneak a hand onto her bottom as Edward and Emmett watched. Edward laughed out loud as she batted his hand away firmly.

"Girl's got style," said Emmett with a sly smile and a raised eyebrow.

"That girl is beautiful," breathed Edward as he saw her smile for the first time, an unconscious grin in response to some comment that the blonde had made as she pulled the brunette alongside her, forcing their dates to trail behind on the path.

"I would bang that blonde so hard..." began Emmett.

"Ssssshhhh," interrupted Edward, indicating the open window. "They might hear."

"They might," said Emmett, huskily, "and that little blonde might just decide to spend the night in here with me instead of going into the stupid dance."

"She might," said Edward, rolling the window up quickly before his best friend said something that the brunette might actually hear, "but she might also punch you. I promise you this, I'm not stepping in the way if she does."

"I can handle her," he said, flexing his quarterback muscles.

"Do you know nothing?" said Edward, sneaking a play punch onto Emmett's thigh while his attention had been on his bulging biceps. "You might be able to take on half a football team yourself but a girl like that would play dirty."

"I'd love her to play dirty," said Emmett, with a lascivious smile, the same one that made the girls at school go weak at the knees.

"I'll remind of that when she's scratched your eyes out or dealt you a swift punch to the family jewels."

"Relax," said Emmett, as the quartet disappeared out of view, "they didn't hear."

The sports hall looked amazing, walls swathed in white material to cover up the functional breeze block. A DJ was playing the latest tunes and instead of the harsh overhead lights soft ambient light glowed from the walls, diffused by the white material and overlaid with the hypnotic swirling flashes from the huge glitterball twirling overhead. Yet for Edward the glitter ball faded into black and white as he observed the sparkling emerald jewel of the tall brunette. She seemed more interested in chatting in hushed tones to her blonde friend than in her date and the two boys made small talk awkwardly off to one side. He couldn't take his eyes off her. She must have felt his gaze upon her because after a moment she lifted her head, stopping what she was saying in mid sentence as she met his eyes. Her mouth dropped just a fraction, into a perfect little O before a tiny smile turned up the corners of her beautiful mouth. She dropped her head back to her friend, subtly turning her shoulders so that he was staring at her side profile. Nevertheless a moment later her blonde friend glanced over a shoulder at Edward, before a warning hand from the brunette made her drop her gaze again. His stomach flipped, knowing that they must be talking about him.

"Come on," said Edward, seeing his chance "they're heading towards the punch, minus dates."

"Let me," said Emmett a moment later, giving the blonde his trademark smile as he ladled punch into a cup and handed it to her.

"Thanks," she said, smiling back, unabashed at being the focus of his gaze, looking up at him with a look of her own that was as much a challenge as an invitation. "Are the girls at Forks all useless or is this some clumsy attempt at picking me up?"

"The latter, darling," he said, unperturbed by her tone, "and I've got a feeling that it's working."

"I'll be the judge of that," she said, flirtatiously.

"I'm Emmett," he said, "and this is Edward." He nudged Edward forward from where he had been hiding in the shadow cast by Emmett's large form.

"Jessica," said the blonde, extending a confident hand out towards Emmett, "and the quiet one's Bella." With their friends introduced Emmett and Jessica immediately moved away a few steps, launching into an easy flirtatious back and forward that Edward envied.

"Hi," said Bella, stepping toward him with a smile that put him immediately at ease.

"Hi," he replied, smiling back at her, unable to find something further to say when faced with her dark eyes, regarding him curiously from underneath her long lashes. Her skin was fair and clear and there was a smattering of freckles spread across her nose and cheeks. Her lips were full and pink, accentuated by a slick of clear lip gloss. When she smiled, seemingly amused by his silence her teeth were straight and even.

"Our friends certainly seem to be hitting it off," she said, indicating Jessica laughing way too loud at one of Emmett's jokes, a flirtatious hand on his forearm.

"They do," said Edward, with a wry smile. "I've got a feeling that Emmett's finally met his match."

"I have heard Jessica called a bit of a handful on occasion," conceded Bella.

"Bella," interrupted her date, appearing out of nowhere flanked by Jessica's date, "I thought that we could dance now."

"Ummm, I'm talking Mike," said Bella, cold but polite. "Maybe later?"

"How about now?" said Mike, grabbing her hand. "You're supposed to be my date."

"Leave her alone," said Edward, smoothly but with enough menace to make Mike drop her hand and size him up with a rude glare

"Make me," said Mike, squaring up to Edward in a way that made it clear that he didn't see the tall, almost lanky form that hadn't started to fill out yet as a threat.

"With pleasure," said Edward, staring the other boy in the eye. He felt, rather than saw Emmett's bulk siding with him on his left hand side. Mike glanced between them, a subtle change in his body language confirming that he was going to back down.

"Come on Eric," said Mike, indicating for his sidekick to follow him, "it's not worth it for those two." They walked off and he tossed the threat that the girls could make their own way home back over his shoulder.

"Not to worry," said Emmett, "I've got my pick-up, I'll make sure you get home."

"That's settled then," said Edward, grinning firstly because the problem of the girls' dates had been dealt with and because the offer of a ride home meant that he had the whole evening to spend with Bella.

"Dance?" he offered, waving in the direction of the writhing, seething hormonal throng.

"Oh, I'm not much of a dancer," said Bella, blushing furiously. "Two left feet. How about we find a quiet corner and chat instead?" Edward grinned even wider, he couldn't have planned it better himself.

XXXX

"Mike Newton might be a douchebag but he's still editor of the biggest circulating newspaper in Greenburgh," said Jessica, pointing out the obvious to her suddenly silent boss.

"I know," he sighed. "Surely you of all people can sweet talk him into saying something positive?"

"Edward," said Jessica, with a grin, "not only did you steal Mike's date from him at the Spring Fling, but afterward I spread a rumour that he was a pencil dick."

"Did you?" Edward looked at Jessica with renewed respect.

"Of course I did." She dropped her head to her lap, clasping her hands there demurely. "I mean, Bella and I were friends once. He called her a whore for spending the evening with you. I thought he was going to explode when he saw you kiss her during that last slow dance. I had to get even."

"Why are you not friends now?" It was a question that he had never asked either himself or Bella before.

"We just went in different directions," shrugged Jessica. "I went to college and she stayed at home and had a baby. I tried to keep up with her at first but we had nothing in common. After college I moved to LA for a few years and when I did come back to Seattle she was wrapped up in lunching with the other rich ladies and sitting on committees. She had changed and our worlds were just too different."

Had Bella changed? He frowned. It wasn't something that he had considered. He knew that she had grown up, they both had. But had she actually changed. For that matter, had he changed?

"I'm sorry," said Jessica quietly, suddenly remarkably interested in her french manicure, "you know, for the other night."

"Oh, you've nothing to be sorry about," said Edward, quickly, keen not to have to discuss what had, or in this case, what hadn't happened.

"I feel like I do," she said, looking up at him with what he thought was genuine remorse in her eyes. "I was drunk on champagne and so happy about the factory, I just misread the signals."

"Easily done," he muttered, looking at his watch and trying to find a way to escape the conversation. "I'm happy never to talk about it again."

"Glad we cleared the air," she replied, sounding like more of the perky woman that he knew. She was on her feet in a flash, clacking across the floor in her skyscraper heels to get the press release out before close of business. "Bella's a lucky man," she said, smiling over one shoulder as she left the room, "not all men would have turned down a drunk woman." He smiled in response, a tight, tense movement that was just skin stretched tight over gritted teeth. Seemingly satisfied, Jessica left, closing the door behind her and leaving him in blessed silence.

Edward closed the lid of the laptop, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers to try to relieve some of the tension that was building up just behind his forehead. He swivelled one hundred and eighty degrees in his chair toward the window, clicking a button on the control panel to lift the blinds electronically to their peak. Although it was only a little after five on a June afternoon the gathered clouds had brought on an early twilight, shrouding the city in darkness as the first blobs of rain started to splatter against the window pane.

He felt like a fraud. Jessica was congratulating him for being such a good husband and repelling her advances when only weeks before he would have taken advantage of her in a heartbeat. Only yesterday he had been dying to get home to watch webcam footage of his wife with another man and now real life had reared it's ugly head and put everything into perspective. There was more to life than fulfilling his own sordid sexual fantasies. People relied on him. His family relied on him. The people of Greenburgh were looking to him to facilitate the regeneration of their town.

Tonight, he decided, he would watch. Tomorrow he would go up to the cabin and get his wife back.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey all, thanks for the continued support; the follows, the faves, the reviews and PM's that keep me going when I feel like I might be starting to flag!**

 **This has definitely been one of my favourite chapters to write and once I was on a roll I just couldn't stop typing until I got it finished. I hope that you guys enjoy reading it as much.**

 **Reminder:**

 **I've had a few comments now on the tagging of this story. To be clear it is a love triangle featuring Bella, Edward and Jacob. All characters feature prominently but I'm going to take this little trio to some pretty dark and despairing places so if that will be uncomfortable for you, don't read on. If you're looking for candy floss, fluff and unicorns then find something different to read. Also, I'm not going to disclose now who she ends up with because then there would be no point in reading the story!**

 **Just a heads up - my settings are such that guest reviews with curse words in them will be held for moderation. I believe in free speech so I will publish all reviews, whether they are positive or negative, unless the level of swearing is such that I think it really is too offensive for public consumption. Some of you have had really strong reactions to this story and whilst it can be a little unnerving to receive reviews filled with expletives I am actually genuinely pleased that my little story is generating a reaction!**

 **Again, to be clear, this is a marathon, not a sprint, and you're going to need to hang in there to get any kind of HEA.**

 **As always, no copyright infringements are intended. The characters are Stephanie Meyer's and I have just borrowed them.**

 **LadyLetters**

 **XXXX**

"And then she stabbed you?" giggled Bella, tears of laughter misting her eyes.

"No," replied Jacob, laughing so hard himself that he could barely get the words out, "she stabbed me later when I told her that Paul had signed up for another five years."

"Had he?" asked Bella, eyes widening.

"Hell no!" replied Jacob, "the first five years were enough. He was involved in training the Iraqis to police themselves and lost some friends when somebody that he considered an ally turned his machine gun on their own side."

"Oh no, that's awful!"

"It just wasn't what he had signed up for so first chance he got, he came home."

"So how long did you let Leah stew for?"

"Well, I came clean pretty quickly when she stuck me with the potato peeler," he grinned.

"That was really naughty of you," chided Bella.

"Well, in my defence..."

"There's no defence for that," she interrupted.

"In my defence," he began again, slightly louder, talking over her, "Leah hadn't told a soul that she'd been writing to Paul the whole time he was serving." He threw his hands up in the air, trying to effect an innocent face, "I knew that she had always been sweet on him but I genuinely had no idea that she would be so upset by the prospect that he wasn't coming back!"

"Then what happened?"

"Well," he said, trying to suppress a smile, "then they rushed me to the hospital for emergency surgery."

"Rubbish," said Bella, pointedly "I've seen that scar, a band aid would have covered it."

"Fine," said Jacob, crossing his arms across his chest in a defensive pose, bottom lip petted, "my Aunt Sue put a _large_ Band-Aid over the wound and I confessed all. My pride was the biggest victim, the guys have never stopped ribbing me."

"What happened with Paul and Leah?" she asked.

"They got married a few months after he got back."

"Did they invite you?" she said, voice heavy on the sarcasm.

"I was the best man!"

"Awww, that's nice." Her mind suddenly filled with the thought of the broad shouldered Jacob dressed up in a tuxedo, making her smile to herself. They were sitting in the only bar in the next town. It was a dark place, small windows covered with chicken wire obscuring the light just as surely as the dark wood tables and the dark green leather seats of the booths sucked the weak yellow lamplight out of the room. A surly waitress brought them malt shakes and huge plates of fried chicken. Bella had eaten in dozens of high end restaurants, coiffing fine wine and eating nouveau cuisine in tiny portions marooned on oversized white plates. This was definitely not haute cuisine but for this evening it was perfect. The dim light hanging over their table created a cosy, intimate atmosphere. She hadn't tasted such a good chocolate malt since her school days and the fried chicken was crispy and greasy, real comfort food. Jacob was charming and funny, disarmingly fresh and open.

This, she thought to herself, is what dating would have been like in high school if she hadn't met Edward.

"What is it?" asked Jacob, "your face is an open book and it's like a cloud just passed straight across it."

"It's nothing," said Bella, taking a huge slurp of her shake from a red and white striped straw in an attempt at distraction.

"It's not nothing," said Jacob, lapsing into silence, clearly confident that she would feel the need to fill the silence. She didn't, concentrating instead on eating the fried chicken. "Come on Bella," he said, a hint of exasperation entering his voice, "I've just confessed to doing something so awful that my cousin stabbed me and you're on her side about it. Surely I deserve to know what's going through your mind right now?"

"It's just..." she thought for a moment, unsure how to voice her thoughts. "It's just that I never went on a date like this in high school."

"Didn't you?" said Jacob before the reason why dawned on him. "Edward, right?"

"Yes," said Bella, with a hint of sadness. "I'll bet that you were on dates every weekend."

"Something like that," said Jacob, with a sly smile, "nice girls, nasty girls, other peoples girls, more girls than I can remember."

"I thought you'd only slept with twenty something girls?" she asked.

"Oh, Bella," he said in a world weary voice, the twinkle in his dark eyes the only hint that he was toying with her, "there's a huge spectrum of activity out there that stops before actually having sex."

"Something else I missed out on, I guess," she grumbled.

"Oh yeah," he said, "fooling around, dry humping, finger..."

"Stop! Just stop!"

He burst out laughing at her prudish response, waggling his forefinger and middle finger in a lewd illustration of his point.

"I had no idea that you were such a player!"

"I'm not really," he replied, batting away her question with a slight wave of his arm. She was pleased to note that it was him blushing for once instead of her.

"So, if this was a real date," she said, sparing him further blushes by changing the subject and playing with the straw as she observed him over the top of her shake, "what would happen next?"

"Why," said Jacob, mock serious, "I'd give you my letter jacket and ask you to go steady."

"Shut up!" she cried, slightly embarrassed that he was making fun of her inexperience. "Even I'm not that naive."

"You're right," said Jacob, face immediately straight again. "I never did have a letter jacket. I would just have to ask you to go steady."

"Shut up," said Bella, again. "It's not nineteen fifty." She wasn't going to let this one go. "Come on, be serious," she implored, "if we were out on a real date what would happen next?"

"Oh god, Bella, don't make me tell you all my moves." He fixed her with his big eyes, letting them go extra puppy dog wide.

"Spill," she demanded, refusing to be swayed by his winsome gaze.

"Okay, in all seriousness I would offer to drive you home, being the gentleman that I am."

"Uh huh," she said, taking another slurp of her shake.

"Stop that," giggled Jacob, "I can't take you seriously when you suck the straw like that."

"Continue," she commanded, taking the straw between her lips and sucking it, deliberately suggestive this time. He tried to look away but caught her eye and giggled again. She had never heard him make that sound and it was pleased her immensely to hear him completely relaxed and carefree in her company.

"Okay, I'd offer to take you home, as I said, because I'm a gentleman." He managed to pull his face back to serious for a moment to continue. "Then, depending on what type of girl it was there might be some action in the parking lot."

"Action?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at him, amused yet intrigued.

"Action," he replied, raising a suggestive eyebrow. "If she's a nice girl it might be a sweet little kiss before I drop her off safe and sound at her front door."

"And if she's not a nice girl?"

"If she's a nasty girl it might go further in the car park." Bella could feel her eyes widen, incredulous. "A bit of heavy petting, sometimes a blow job, once or twice all the way."

"Ewww," Bella screwed up her face in disgust, "I sat on that front seat, unprotected, on the way here."

"Don't worry," he laughed, deeper and less nervous than his previous giggle, "that's this years model of F150, it's not seen a lot of action yet."

"Any?" she asked, suspiciously.

"Some," he admitted, avoiding her gaze and taking a diversionary slurp of his own shake.

"That's just gross," she declared. "Jacob, you've got to find yourself a girl with some self respect."

Their eyes met and the atmosphere in the booth thickened. Oh god, she thought, what on earth am I doing sitting here flirting like some wide-eyed high school girl on a date with the quarterback? It's not real. It's just an unnatural bubble waiting to be burst. She broke their eye contact and stuffed the last piece of fried chicken into her mouth, wiping her hands on the paper napkin as she chewed the huge mouthful. Jacob, who appeared to have simply inhaled his own chicken, dipped his head to his milkshake and sucked the chocolate liquid up with a ferocity that suggested that it was a lifeline that he was hanging onto.

"Shall I get the cheque?" he said. She nodded her agreement.

XXXX

Edward

I had to wash the sheets again. I've put in for an hours overtime.

Flora

That's all I need, he thought, as he put the housekeeper's pointed little note back onto the console table beside the front door. Flora, with her pot pies and magically replenishing fridge was just about the only thing keeping him sane at the minute. Sighing, he dropped his keys into the little glass bowl on the same table.

Without turning the lights on he slunk up the dark, shadowy stairwell toward the bedroom. Rain lashed against the huge picture window on the upstairs landing, the rivulets casting writhing, twisting shadows onto the light coloured carpet. The house was black and white and shades of grey in the unnatural midsummer darkness. In the bedroom he stripped out of his work suit and left it in a crumpled pile on the floor, too tired to hang it up. He pulled on sweatpants and a T-shirt that he had left on the floor in virtually the same place yesterday. The T-shirt smelled of sweat and beer but he didn't see any point in putting on a fresh one so he pulled the dirty one over his head. Walking along to his beloved study he shut the door behind him and turned on the lamp. It made a warm, cosy arc of light on his darkwood desk. He poured a couple of fingers of Scotch from the decanter and turned on the laptops.

"What the..." He paused for a moment, the glass halfway to his mouth before carefully placing it back down on the desk before him. All of the feeds apart from one were down, harsh black and white static fizzing and jumping in front of his eyes. Frantically, he flicked through each camera one by one, blowing the static up to full screen to confirm that there really was no message hidden in there.

"No input?" he queried the warning message displayed on each screen out loud. Out of the corner of his eye a pulse of sheet lightning lit up the sky outside. Of course, he thought, there's a storm and Bella's in the mountains, they probably don't have any electricity. What it didn't explain, he thought, staring at the single feed that was working, the feed from the main bedroom, was why it was still working. The phone was on a different system from the electricity, that he knew. He pulled out the manual for the cameras and flicked through, finally finding the right page. A few minutes later he understood. The superior camera that he had purchased for the bedroom had something that the others didn't; six hours of battery back-up. It would keep broadcasting for six hours even with the power out, as long as there was a phone line still up to transmit the data. He had no way of knowing how long the power had already been out for so all that he could do was sit and watch and hope that anything that happened tonight would happen in front of him.

XXXX

"Jacob?" said Bella.

"Uh, huh," he responded, never taking his eyes from the road, screwed up as they tried to see the way through the torrential rain and the frantic flapping of the windscreen wipers.

"I'm going to go home tomorrow." She thought she saw his body stiffen but he kept his eyes on the road and both hands on the steering wheel. He didn't reply to her, the only sound in the cab apart from the storm raging outside the high pitched tick of the turn signal as he turned onto the long driveway to the cabin.

"Did you hear me?" she said, louder. "I'm going to go home." This time she was absolutely sure that he had heard her, she could tell by the set of his jaw and the way that he gripped the steering wheel a little tighter. Settling back into the seat she crossed her arms across her chest, letting what had been a comfortable silence spread out into a gaping dark chasm. Finally, they arrived at the cabin. The two big floodlights that usually lit the clearing were off and Bella guessed that the power was down.

"Bella," said Jacob, an unexpected noise in the enforced silence. He put the parking brake on and pulled the key out of the ignition so that the interior of the cab was plunged into darkness.

"What," she replied, a little testy given that he had ignored her for the last five minutes.

"I... I don't know where to start," he said, quietly, one arm on the windowsill of the truck supporting his head which was angled away from her. His other hand still gripped the wheel, holding onto it for dear life.

"The beginning?" she suggested, gently.

"I knew this wasn't real. I did." He turned his head towards her, the dark of his eyes glinting dangerously in the dark. "I knew from the beginning what I was getting into and I was so sure that I could handle it."

"And?" she said, her mouth suddenly so dry that her voice barely registered above the level of a croak.

"Goddammit," he said, hitting the horn with the heel of his hand and making her jump. He kept his hand there, his teeth gritted, the wail of the horn like a melancholy foghorn in the storm, a promise of saviour for lost souls that was cut short as suddenly as it had began when Jacob appeared to return to his senses again. "Bella," he began, "you're something special. You're gorgeous, sexy and funny and smart. I think I'm more myself around you than I have ever been around a woman in my life." She gulped, bracing herself but still caught like a rabbit in the headlights as he turned the full force of his anguished gaze onto her. "I know it has to end, Bella, and I know that you have to put your husband and marriage first. I'm a good guy, I would never deliberately stand between a man and his wife." He lifted a hand to her chin, brushing his thumb over her bottom lip and causing an involuntary shiver to course down her spinal column. "Can we make tonight about us?" She gulped with an audible noise as he moved his hand to cup her cheek. "Can we spend the night in the dark and pretend that it's just you and me and that you're not spending time with me just because he orchestrated it?" She tried to find the words to say but couldn't, gobsmacked into silence by her own selfishness. She had objectified Jacob, treating him like a bit of meat to use and discard to satisfy her own sexual appetites. She had been lying to herself in thinking that he was getting as much from the arrangement as she was.

"I'm sorry," she breathed, her voice barely a whisper. "I didn't mean to hurt you."

"I think I'm falling for you Bella," he said, a single tear glistening in one eye.

Wait a minute, she thought, he seems to be laying it on a bit thick here. Was he being serious?

He must have felt the slight stiffening of her body because he chose that moment to drop his hand from her cheek, turning away from her and rubbing the tear roughly from his eye, presumably before she could see it.

No, she thought, he doesn't want me to see him upset. Hell, I'm a cynical bitch.

He put his hand on the door and pulled the latch, flooding the cab with clear white light and allowing a gust of air to penetrate the warmth with cold grasping fingers.

"Wait," she said, putting her hand on his arm to stop him exiting the truck. He paused for a moment, searching her face in the harsh glare of the overhead cab light before slowly pulling the door to again, plunging the cab into a darkness that felt more complete than before.

"Tonight, Jacob, I'm all yours." His face froze as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing. "No alcohol, no gimmicky underwear, just you and me. Just a couple who've been on a date spending the night together."

"But you'll leave in the morning" he asked quietly, more of a statement than a question.

"I have to, Jacob. You understand that." She picked up his hand and placed it back on her cheek, rubbing her cheek against it like a cat before brushing her lips across the soft, sensitive skin on his wrist, his pulse beating so fast that she could feel it, even in the briefest of movements.

"But tonight, it's just us?" She nodded in confirmation. "And you're doing it because..."

"Don't make me say it," she whispered, shaking her head.

"And you're doing it because?" he said, a sharp edge creeping into his low voice.

"Fuck," she said, his head swivelling towards her in shock at the second swear word that he had ever heard coming from her mouth and the violent manner in which she simultaneously threw down his hand. "I'm doing it because I like you. I really, honestly like you."


	11. Chapter 11

Edward's phone rang, the harsh tone making him jump. If it was anybody else he would have ignored it, but when he saw Emmett's name on the screen he figured he'd better pick up.

"Hello?"

"Edward, it's Emmett. You letting me in?"

"Letting you in?"

"Yes, douchebag, I've been on the doorstep in the pissing rain for ten minutes ringing the bell."

"Oh, sorry, I've been upstairs." He closed the lid of the laptop with one hand, hiding the single remaining CCTV feed from view. "I'll be down in a minute."

Emmett was literally dripping wet when Edward got to the door, standing on the doorstep in a dark suit with a light belted mac over the top, a wheeled suitcase in his hand. He was tall and broad with bright blue eyes and dark hair, a smattering of grey hair at the temples giving him a sophisticated look that Edward secretly envied.

"I thought you were getting the redeye?"

"I was meant to be," explained Emmett, barging past Edward into the dry sanctuary of the house, shaking the rain from his coat with a movement not unlike a large dog, "but my PA moved me onto the early evening flight when she heard about the storm." He shrugged himself out of the wet mac and draped it over a chair. "What the hell are you doing in here with all the lights off?" He dropped his suitcase to the floor, unzipping it in one practised movement and rummaging around for some dry clothes. Finding what he was looking for he rose to his feet. "In fact," he said, disappearing in the direction of the nearest bathroom, "don't tell me what you were doing. Just turn on some freaking lights. And get me a beer!"

* * *

"Candles," said Jacob, unwinding her reluctant legs from around his waist and letting her slide to the floor. It was dark in the house, only the strange twilight coming through the uncovered windows. He left her marooned at the bottom of the staircase for a moment, rummaging noisily and hurriedly in the dark kitchen for a moment before reappearing with a torch and a box of candles.

"Always prepared," he said with a grin, illuminating his face from below like a Halloween lantern for a brief moment before turning the beam on the stairs, grabbing her hand and pulling her urgently up the stairs to the bedroom with him. The harsh cold light of the torch cast strange tortured shadows on the walls making the familiar place uncanny.

"Excuse me for a moment," she said, kissing Jacob briefly on the lips and padding across the floor to the bathroom in stocking soles. Washing her hands she felt a frisson of fear as sheet lightning lit up the sky outside, bringing a fresh flurry of rain to bear on the new picture window. When she opened the door Jacob was standing in front of the camera, peering intently at it. When he heard her footsteps he spun toward her, a strange look on his face.

"What you doing?" she asked, leaning against the door frame with what she knew was a filthy smile playing across her features. In the few moments that Bella had been in the bathroom he had lit a handful of candles at strategic points around the bed and they spread a warm, friendly glow across the still crumpled covers, a stark contrast to the cold white thundercracks of the storm raging outside.

"Nothing," he said, with an answering grin, "I just can't believe that we're going to do this without the camera."

"I know," she smiled, unzipping her wet hoodie and letting it fall to the floor when something caught her eye. "Wait a minute," she asked, squinting at the camera, "is the light on?"

"I wondered that," he said, following her gaze with his own, "but I think it's just the light from the candles reflecting on the LED bulb." He continued quickly, "I mean, there's no electricity, how could we think that the light was on?" He laughed a little too loudly. He must be nervous, she thought, with a flood of tenderness towards the suddenly awkward man.

"Shut up and take me to bed," she said, out loud.

* * *

"You stink," said Emmett, diplomatically, wrinkling his nose as Edward handed him a cold beer.

"Thanks." Despite himself Edward smiled. Emmett's solid, noisy presence was already a comfort to him. Friends since childhood they had somehow managed to stay close even when Emmett went off to Northwestern on a football scholarship and Edward stayed in Forks with a wife and baby. In spite of, or perhaps because of this, in the ranks of people that counted in Edward's world, Emmett still stood out as the single person who's opinion he cared about and who he could trust to tell him the truth, no matter how much that truth might hurt.

"None of that famous English charm brushed off on you then?" remarked Edward, snarkily.

"Not a chance," said Emmett, leaning comfortably against a kitchen worktop. He took a long swig of the golden liquid.

"None of that Saville Row styling either?" Edward eyed the other man's outfit critically.

"Well," replied Emmett with a twinkle in his eye, "if somebody hadn't let me stand on the doorstep in the rain for ten minutes then I would be dressed in made to measure. Instead," he indicated the sports T-shirt and gaudy basketball shorts, "I've had to put on my gym gear." Emmett didn't play football any more but he still kept in shape, a slimmed down version from his college days but still broad and muscular, the sleeves of his T-shirt gripping tight to his shapely arms.

"Touche," said Edward, twisting the top off his own beer with a satisfying psssht but not taking a sip. They both knew why Emmett was there, a direct response to his midweek emergency call. Emmett had known Edward for long enough to understand that he needed space to confess what was bothering him.

"How's Renesmee?" asked Emmett.

"Great," smiled Edward, "enjoying summer camp, showing an amazing aptitude for sports."

"She didn't get that from you," muttered Emmett into his beer bottle.

"Agreed," said Edward, "Bella's not that sporty either though, it's maybe the influence of Aunt Alice or her godfather." Emmett lifted his beer, an acknowledgement that his duties had been taken seriously. "Who was the London girl?"

"The girl on the phone?" said Emmett.

"Well, that depends on how many girls that you have in London."

"A girl in every port," he grinned. "But just the one in London. I hooked up with her last year and she seems happy enough to keep my bed warm when I'm back in that neck of the woods."

"And Rosalie?"

"Complicated," said Emmett with a grimace, which he tried to cover up by taking another drink of his beer.

"Not permanently over then?" hazarded Edward.

"No."

"So, what's the score then?"

"I don't know," said Emmett, with a dismissive shrug, although Edward could tell from the slight wrinkles at the corner of his friends eye that he wasn't nearly as cool about it as he was trying to make out. "She gets under my skin like nobody else does but she's just so..."

"Volatile?" offered Edward.

"I suppose you could say that," replied Emmett with a chuckle. It somehow didn't seem enough of a description of some of the blazing rows that Edward and Bella had witnessed. Edward had seen plenty of the fall out from their explosive arguments. "It's just always up and down with her." He examined the label of his beer bottle for a moment, rolling the bottle in his hand to read to the edges. "The highs are amazing but the lows are awful, soul destroying even. Just when I think that she's made me feel so bad that it's time to call things off she offers a life raft and then we have the most amazing make-up sex and suddenly I'm on a high again." He laughed, bitterly.

"Well," replied Edward, dryly, "statistically, given that you've slept with every woman in the Western hemisphere you were bound to meet your match in one of them." They laughed. "Seriously, I don't get it," continued Edward, shaking his head in sympathy. "I've seen girls trying to make you jealous before. Dirty dancing with other men, flirting with bartenders. Usually you're cool as a cucumber." Emmett nodded his agreement. "But with Rosalie? Man," Edward shook his head, "that's something else. I've never seen you get jealous or protective like that. It's kind of scary."

"I guess that it's because I care," said Emmett, his face long, the corners of his mouth turned down. "Those other girls? They could be fucking the bartender on the bar for all that I could care. But Rosalie?" He shook his head, the set of his jaw tightening, "I'd rip the head off any man that so much as looked at her the wrong way."

"Love hurts?" said Edward, lifting his beer in a toast.

"Love hurts," sighed Emmett, clinking his condensation covered bottle against Edward's.

* * *

Bella raised her head from Jacob's prone form long enough to lift her T-shirt over her head before dropping her head back down to kiss him some more. Her legs straddled his waist and his arms wrapped tight around her as the kiss deepened, his warm hands roaming up and down her back. She dropped her head to his neck, nuzzling her cheek against the stubble on his jawline before peppering his neck with butterfly kisses. He wound his hands in her hair, inhaling deeply and moaning as she nibbled his earlobe.

"You smell so good," he whispered, so close to her ear that the sound reverberated through every tiny sensor in her body.

"You don't smell so bad yourself," she giggled. Sobering from her little fit of the giggles she sat upright for a moment, enjoying the way that Jacob's eyes followed, lingering on the shape of her breasts encased in their virginal white lace brassiere. "Hey, this isn't fair."

"What isn't?" said Jacob, a cloud of concern casting a shadow over his face for the briefest of moments.

"I'm topless," she murmured, "you should be too."

"I can arrange that," he grinned, bending his body at the waist to an upright position, face to face with Bella, before pulling the T-shirt over his head in a single fluid movement. Her hands immediately went to his body, caressing the strong planes of his back, exploring the wideness of his shoulders, running her hands down his muscular arms and raking her fingers across his nipples with an exploratory touch. He smiled at her enthusiasm and didn't try to stop her as she pushed him back against the bed, running a hand across his chest, trailing her fingers through the smattering of dark hair between his pecs and following the dark trail of hair that led the way from his belly button into the confines of his jeans.

"Of course," said Jacob, grabbing her hand and kissing the back of her hand like a Parisian gent, "in my book what you are just now is definitely not topless."

"And just how would you describe my current state of undress," said Bella, as innocently as she could muster when the bottom half of her body was writhing against his denim covered erection.

"Shirtless, I guess?"

"And," she said, pushing one of the straps of the bra down over her shoulder, exposing an expanse of creamy flesh at the top of her breast, "can I assume that you would like me to assume your definition of topless?"

"Yes," he squeaked, clearing his throat dramatically as she giggled at his strangled voice, "yes," he continued, in a huskier voice, "that would definitely be my preferred state of undress at this specific time." Slowly, not quite believing her own boldness, she undid the catch of her bra, pushing the straps down her arms until only her hands were left holding the flimsy fabric across her bust. When she realised that Jacob had stopped breathing, stuck in the moment, she threw it dramatically across the room to be rewarded by a huge whoosh of air as Jacob finally released the lungful of breath that he had been holding. The bra hit the rough log wall and dropped to the floor.

"Wow," he said, greedily examining her topless form with lust filled eyes in a way that melted away the last of her self consciousness, "I could never get sick of these." His hands rested on her waist for a moment before travelling up her ribcage and skimming the edge of her breasts in a way that made her shiver. He traced hot fingers along her collarbone, tracing the top of her breasts with a feather light touch, rotating his hands slightly to cup their weight. Her nipples puckered at his attentions yet he studiously avoided them, clearly intent on a long drawn out evening. She sighed happily and he wound his arms around her, pulling her down toward him, crushing her naked breasts against his chest as their lips mashed together greedily.

Sitting up again after a few moments Bella placed one knee then another between his legs, forcing them wide open. He smiled, closing his eyes in pleasure as she caressed him through his jeans. She undid the top button and his eyes opened again, looking at her with a slight question which was quickly answered by her smile and the fact that she bit her bottom lip in anticipation while her fingers slowly popped the remaining three poppers that made up the fly. His eyes closed again in pleasure as she pushed her hand into his tight black boxer shorts and pulled it, somewhat roughly, from the tight confines, enjoying the sight of his hard length free and rearing before taking it in an exploratory grip.

She licked her lips, for Jacob's benefit and scooted further back along the bed until her head was directly above his cock, enjoying the anticipation on his face as she trailed her long hair along his length. Dipping her head she ran her tongue from the base of the shaft to the top, slowly, as if testing an ice cream for flavour and texture. The smell of man was in her nose, an unmistakable heady hot musk. She swirled her tongue around the head, slowly taking in the shape and texture of the ridge before flicking her tongue across the sensitive head, enjoying the first slightly shocking drop of semen. She looked up at Jacob, meeting his eyes as her head paused for a moment, the base of his cock firmly in her hand. He looked at her with unabashed admiration and when she saw her reflection in his eyes she thought herself almost unrecognisable, a wanton harlot with smoky eyes and tousled hair. She watched herself in his eyes for a moment and it was like watching somebody else, as if it was not her that lowered her head to take his cock in her mouth. She felt a strange mix of relief and sadness when Jacob closed his eyes and the image of other Bella disappeared.

* * *

"So," said Emmett, after half an hour of chewing over the economy, football and the Greenburgh plant, "are you going to enlighten me on the reason for your late night call two nights ago?"

"It wasn't late at night here," protested Edward. They had moved into the living room, stretching out on two sides of a large cream L shaped sofa. The curtains were closed so that the warm lamplight cocooned from the storm raging outside.

"Stop changing the subject," said Emmett, firmly.

"I don't know where to start," said Edward, putting his bottle onto the coffee table and pushing his hand nervously through his tousled blonde hair.

"From the beginning?" suggested Emmett.

"It's a long story," cautioned Edward.

"Another beer then," Emmett downed the last of his bottle in three loud gulps.

"Don't worry mate," he said, "handing Edward the empty bottle, I've got all night. Although," he said, touching his stomach which had coincidentally just made an audible growl, "if it's going to be all night let's ring for a pizza too."

* * *

"I'm surprised you want to kiss me," said Bella, as Jacob pulled her close to him and kissed the lips that had been wrapped around his cock only moments earlier. The salty tang of happy man was still on her tongue.

"Firstly," said Jacob, kissing her full on the lips with an audible smack in illustration, "I'm just so happy that you would want to do that for me that I would probably do pretty much anything for your right now." She giggled, resting her head on his shoulder, snuggling into his side. "Secondly, this sex thing," he said, running a hand down her ribcage and across the sensitive skin at the side of her breast, "if you're doing it right your mouth and tongue get into all sorts of places. Clean places," he said kissing her on the lips again, "and dirty places." His voice dropped to a low husky whisper as he whispered into her ear the words that made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. "Dirty, dirty places." Her stomach flipped a little at the very thought of exactly where his tongue could get to.

Seeming to get his energy back he pulled his jeans off but left his boxer shorts on, tucking his cock back in and unbuttoning Bella's jeans, pulling the stretch material over her feet along with her socks and discarding hem carelessly. She felt suddenly naked, dressed only in the flimsy white stretch lace panties that matched the discarded bra. Her apprehension soon faded as he skimmed his hands over her thighs, gently pushing her legs open with his legs to make space for his own to rest in between them as he slid up her body, supporting his torso with his arms and lowering himself onto her, dropping his lips to hers. Her body reacted immediately, tangling her hands in his dark tousled hair, wrapping her legs around his waist and pulling him closer to her so that their whole torsos were touching, a hot, sticky joining of ready flesh. As she felt him harden again against her she ground her body against him with more urgency, running her hands down to his tight bottom to feel his length more against her wet slit.

Taking the hint he backed away a moment, the loss palpable as the heat of his body left hers. Yet that heat was replaced by another, more urgent feeling, as he pulled the panties to one side.

"You're so wet," he murmured, dipping an exploratory finger into her wet centre and quickly adding a second as she responded positively to the sensation with a low moan, an involuntarily exhalation that surprised Bella as much as it appeared to please Jacob. She suffered a skilled assault, a barrage of fingers, a skilled thumb rubbing her clit and a hot mouth flicking and sucking her nipples into excited peaks until she could literally wait no longer.

"Please, Jacob," she panted, "please." He grinned, wriggling off of her long enough to pull off the black boxer shorts and then roughly yank off her soaked panties. She was ready for him to just to fuck her, to slake the greedy beast that had been growing deep inside her but Jacob had other ideas. He spread her with one hand and lined his cock up with her wet centre, only for her to push her hips impatiently up against him.

"Patience," he whispered, using his body weight to still her as his hands moved up her body and interlaced in hers, forcing them above her head as his cock slid into her for the first time, painfully slow but deliciously deep and full, a bittersweet sensation that was both too much and not enough at the same time. Her body curved, lifting off the bed, her head thrown back with the first excruciating exhalation of pleasure and frustration.

"Look at me," he said, pausing for a moment. She met his eyes, lost for a moment in the nakedness of their molten brown depths. In that moment she was keenly aware of the differences between humans and animals and the difference between fucking, which is what they had been doing for the last few nights, and making love. He was staring into the depths of her soul as he filled her with more than just his flesh, their bodies blending to one as they shared the depths of each self with the other without inhibition.

He saw her.


	12. Chapter 12

"You did what?" Emmett's face fell, his jaw dropping into a cartoon ready caricature of somebody in shock.

"You heard," replied Edward testily, running a hand through his hair. "I thought you promised not to judge?"

"Fuck, Edward!" exclaimed Emmett, with venom, "I thought that you were going to confess to getting down and dirty with Jessica. This is... it's..." He trailed off, unable to find adequate words to describe the situation.

"Why would you think I was getting it on with Jessica?" asked Edward, instinctively trying to deflect the uncomfortable way that his friend was staring at him.

"You've been sniffing around her like a dog in heat these past few months."

"No, I've not," said Edward, indignantly. Emmett raised one eyebrow, giving Edward a look that made clear that he could see right through his protestation. "OK," sighed Edward, "I did get a little bit obsessed with her."

"I knew it," said Emmett, punching a defenceless pillow that was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. "All those selfies with the boss on Facebook and Instagram. I knew that there was something going on. At least you managed to keep it in your pants."

"Are you friends with all your exes on Facebook?" snapped Edward.

"Most of them," said Emmett, shrugging his shoulders. Suddenly, he burst into a guilty grin. "It just means I can keep an eye on who's married or back on the market."

"You dog!" said Edward, throwing another unlucky cushion at him. "Trawling social media for poor women to seduce for a second time round in their moment of weakness."

"Third time sometimes," he snorted quietly to himself. "At least," he added in a clearer voice, leaning back on the sofa and spreading his arm along the back, revealing the barcode tattooed on the underside of his muscular right arm, "I never promise them anything. I don't promise to stay the night, or call them." He fixed Edward with his razor sharp stare. "I certainly don't promise that I will love them until the day I die and then push them into having sex with random contractors while I watch."

"Ouch," said Edward, flinching at Emmett's blunt assessment of the situation. They sat in companionable silence for a few moments, the only noise in the big empty house the pitter patter of rain against the windows and the faint humming of the giant fridge freezer next door in the kitchen.

"I've really messed up, haven't I?" said Edward eventually, in a soft voice.

"Maybe..." said Emmett, tentatively, clearly wanting to comfort his friend but struggling to pull anything positive from the situation in which he was mired. "You've told me what's happened in the last few days," said Emmett, putting two feet back on the plush carpet and sitting forward to let his elbows rest on his knees. "You don't just wake up and decide to get another man to seduce your wife." He looked at Edward until he received a nod of tacit agreement. "Likewise Bella doesn't just decide to go along with a plan like that on a whim. There has to be something else, an underlying problem that has never been resolved? Maybe we should rewind a bit, try to understand what's driven you two apart."

"Maybe," said Edward, non-committally. He wasn't keen on airing all of his dirty laundry in front of Emmett.

"Christ Edward," said Emmett, exasperated by the lukewarm response to his attempt to tackle the situation head on. "You two were my gold standard, the kids that made it against all the odds. If you and Bella fall by the wayside I don't know if my unshakeable belief in marriage will survive."

"Your what?" Edward wrinkled his nose.

"You heard me," said Emmett, laughing and blushing very slightly in a self conscious way that made Edward thaw a little, "I might not have got anywhere close yet but I do believe that when I find the right person it will be forever."

"Forever is hard." Edward's mouth twisted into a hard thin line.

* * *

Edward knocked on the door, bracing himself for the disapproving form of Charlie Swan, middle aged police cadet and over protective father. He and Bella had been dating for six months and Charlie remained unenthused and borderline hostile about Edward's presence in her life. Tonight he took longer than usual to answer the door, looking tired, unshaven and bleary eyed as he sagged into the doorframe for support. Sniffing the air surreptitiously Edward thought that he could smell liquor on Charlie's breath. Glancing inside he saw an open bottle of whiskey and a glass on the table, the black label a contrast to the cheery gingham tablecloth in the sparse but clean scrubbed kitchen.

The only saving grace in the man's unkempt appearance, thought Edward, was the fact that Charlie didn't seem to be able to muster the energy to direct as much hatred as usual in his direction.

"Mr Swan," he said, as politely as possible, "I was hoping to speak to Bella."

"Not a good time," said Charlie, putting a hand on the edge of the door as if to push it shut in Edward's face.

"Please," said Edward, the note of urgency in his voice enough to make Charlie pause for a moment. "I've not heard from Bella in days, I've been worried."

"Trust me," said Charlie, closing his eyes and swaying a little, as if all that he wanted to do was retreat back into his own little world, "it's not a good time."

"Dad?" Bella appeared on the stairs. "It's fine. I want him to come up." Charlie was usually fanatical about not leaving them alone together but tonight he just stood aside, watching Edward walk past him and up the stairs toward Bella before shutting the front door wordlessly and walking unsteadily back to the kitchen. Edward watched him slump back into the wooden chair.

"What's going on?" he asked, wondering why Bella was in her pyjamas so early. It was only once he emerged from the dark of the stairwell into the light of her bedroom that he saw her red eyes and puffy face. She didn't reply immediately, just shut the door silently behind him and slumped onto the bed. He had never been allowed in her bedroom before and a quick sweep of his eyes revealed a light, bright space with an ornately framed double bed covered in a home made patchwork quilt. A desk sat in front of the window, a comforting mass of ordered untidiness, chaos with an underlying order than although unconventional was apparent to the studied eye. A multi-coloured rag rug, clearly home-made, spanned the gap between the door and the bed where Bella had slumped like an incongruous multi-coloured bridge.

"Bella, tell me," he said urgently, sitting down beside her, "what's going on?"

"It's Mom," whispered Bella, her voice barely a whisper, fresh tears welling in her soft brown eyes. "She passed."

"Passed?" Edward didn't understand immediately. "Passed what?"

"Passed away." He could have kicked himself there and then for missing the clues and misinterpreting her simple comment.

"Oh," he breathed, the air leaving his lungs in a single sickening movement "I'm so sorry." The words felt trite when they tumbled from his lips, painfully inadequate in the context of how she must be feeling at this exact moment in time. Edward had been aware of an illness, something that Charlie avoided talking about at all and that Bella spoke of in vague, hushed terms, but he had never suspected that it was terminal. Instinctively he pulled her to him. Her body was pliable as a ragdoll and she cuddled into him. Her reserve seemed to erode immediately and as soon as his arms were safely around her she let go, crying with abandon into his chest, huge unladylike sobs wracking her body.

"I'm sorry Edward," she said, some time later, when the daylight had faded into darkness, a new moon visible through the open curtains. Her earth moving sobs had moved through hiccupping little gasps and low animal wails and finally subsided into the occasional sniffle of somebody who had worn themselves out with the physical manifestation of grief. "I must look like such a mess."

They had moved into a lying position over the course of the evening and her head rested on his chest, rising slightly to bestow a tiny embarrassed smile upon him.

"Never," he said, smiling genuinely in response, "you look beautiful to me." She did, he thought, she really did. Her face was swollen with crying, her lips red and full and her hair wild and tangled. Her dark eyes sparkled with tears but as he looked at her his stomach thrilled. There was something naked about her eyes, a dangerous edge lurking within their depths that he had not seen before. It both thrilled and terrified him.

She moved her head up to his to plant a kiss on his lips. It was long, lingering, salty with tears and if he was not mistaken just a little bit sensual. As her lips left his she wrapped her back firmly in his arms, smelling the lavender scent of her hair, yet she seemed restless, running her hands across his body in a more insistent way than she had ever done previously.

"Bella," he began, "we don't have to..."

"We don't have to what?" she said, running a hand up his thigh and putting it on his crotch with a boldness that he could not mistake. If he could have turned off his hormones there and then he would have, for it was with abject shame that he realised that his cock was hardening at her touch, his body responding to her in a way that his mind knew was utterly wrong.

"We don't have to do anything," he said, taking her wrist gently and guiding it away from his nether regions to a far safer resting place.

"Edward," she said, a fresh welling of tears spilling from the bottom of her eyes and down her cheeks. "Please." She looked at him, begging, undisguised need in her eyes as clear as if she had written on her forehead that she needed this, needed to feel something that wasn't grief. "Please," she said again, taking his hand and pulling it up her pyjamas to rest on her naked breast. He hated himself in that brief moment as her nipple hardened under his touch, signalling that her body was ready and eroding his self control. Fleeting thoughts passed across his mind, the plans that he had made for their first night together, candles, massage oil, a night that she would remember forever that showed just how much he loved her, how much he worshipped the very ground that she walked on.

"I don't have any..." he began, the practical concern of contraception entering his mind for the briefest of moments.

"Please," she replied with more urgency, "it won't matter, not this once." It was with this request that any misgivings that he had faded into the background as the once mysterious extent of her naked body finally became reality, a creamy fleshed, soft fantasy quivering in his arms.

"Are you alright?" he asked, urgently, as she broke into a fresh flood of tears when he entered her. "Am I hurting you?"

"No," she said, through gritted teeth, tears flowing freely again. He knew that he was hurting her, he could tell by the way that her body tensed up underneath him and the way that she bit her lip and the sudden intake of breath. "No," she snarled, baring her teeth at him as he made to pull out of her, "don't stop." He couldn't disobey her. Not when she used that tone of voice, not when her eyes screamed need in their depths, not when every cell and fibre and hormone in his body was screaming at him to keep doing it. He pushed into her again and she moaned, a primal keening that made an unsettling juxtaposition to the tears streaming from her face. Abandoning any sense of propriety he thrust into her, harder than his gentlemanly side would have liked, feeling a strange thrill as her body responded, pushing back against him with abandon and as he poured his soul into her she whispered into the moonlit darkness that she loved him, over and over.

* * *

"Wow," said Bella, noting as she trailed an idle hand down his torso that Jacob was hard again, "pretty impressive for a man who has peaked twice already."

"Peaked?" he said, his face crumpling into an incredulous smile. "You are so cute." He pulled her closer to him with the strong arm on which her head was lying, planting a tender little kiss on the end of her nose. "You speak like a nineteen fifties housewife in the sack, but you're still so, so, cute."

"Do you peak with many nineteen fifties housewives?" asked Bella cheekily, rolling onto her front and placing her chin and one arm onto his broad chest.

"No," said Jacob, with a serious look, "most of them would be..." His mouth moved into a mock approximation of concentration and he pretended to be counting on his fingers. "Well," he conceded, abandoning his attempt to calculate the potential age gap, "they'd be pretty old now anyway. In fact, how old is your Mother?"

"My Mother passed away when I was seventeen," said Bella, evenly.

"Shit," said Jacob, tensing under her as he realised his faux pas. "I'm sorry, I didn't realise."

"It's fine," she said, trailing a distracted hand through the sparse dark hair on his chest, winding a trail around the hard little nipples. "It was a long time ago."

* * *

Bella knew she was pregnant by the day of the funeral. She couldn't say how she knew, she just somehow understood that the yellow bile that left her body as her empty stomach heaved again and again was a manifestation of new life rather than a symptom of stress in her own life.

Charlie, despite being wrapped up in his own grief, was obviously worried about her.

"Are you Okay?" he asked, pounding gently on the bathroom door, jumping slightly as she pulled it open.

"Fine," she said, pushing past his dark suit clad form into the hall and towards her bedroom.

"I don't understand how you can be so ill," said Charlie, following her, filling out the doorway as he watched her slip into dark high heeled shoes and pull on a dark, wool coat over her simple shift dress. "You've barely eaten a thing over the last few days."

"I don't know," said Bella, carelessly wiping an already crumpled tissue over her puffy eyes before using it to wipe the last of the residual vomit from her lips. "I just want today to be over."

"Me too," said Charlie, tears starting to pool in his own eyes. "Come on," he added gently, "the car's here, it's time to go." She was nearly as tall as him in her heels yet she still felt like a little girl as she gazed up at him with tears in her own eyes, their joint grief consolidating in his offered hand, a mixture of support and a mutual understanding of the deep, deep wound that had been inflicted on them both. They clung to each other like a lifeboat in the storm as they left the house and got into the dark car waiting outside.


	13. Chapter 13

"Well," said Edward, tentatively, trying to make a start on Emmett's plan to dissect where his marriage had gone wrong. "Carlisle and Esme have never liked Bella, I guess that's always caused friction."

"In the interests of being fair," said Emmett, who had known Edward's parents since he was a child, spending more time at the Cullen's than at his own family's place as a teenager. "Carlisle had great plans for you."

"He wanted me to be a doctor, like him," Edward flicked his eyes toward Emmett in a sheepish acknowledgement that his friend spoke the truth. "I was never so sure." His voice sounded defensive, even to his own biased ears.

"Carlisle just wanted to give you the best chance in life," said Emmett, blandly, stating a fact. "College, travelling, a job with him in the hospital in Forks when you were ready to settle down. He just couldn't see a future for you when Bella got herself pregnant. You can't blame him for worrying about you."

"Technically, I got Bella pregnant,"said Edward.

"Semantics," replied Emmett, waving away his comment. "Carlisle and Esme have only been focused on making sure you have the best start in life."

"I guess," sighed Edward. "Still," he continued, "whether I met Bella or not, or even if I didn't end up getting her pregnant I would never have followed him into private practice."

"Fixing noses and sucking fat from old lady ass not for you?"

"Hell no," said Edward, shuddering at the very thought.

* * *

"So," said Esme, with uncharacteristic stillness, her voice flat. "She waited until she was too far gone to get an abortion before telling you?" His mother and father sat opposite him at the dark mahogany dining table. Esme's signature coq au vin sat untouched on each of the fine china plates. Only Alice was actually eating, a frantic scraping of fork against plate at his left hand side, an obvious attempt to finish the meal and excuse herself from the difficult conversation.

"Not exactly," admitted Edward, "I've known for a while."

"What?" yelled Carlisle, a furious fist pumping onto the tabletop and making the cutlery visibly jump. Esme put a warning hand on her husband's arm, exchanging a loaded glance with him, the communicative preserve of those who have been married for many years. Alice stood up, abandoning the half finished plate of food and scurrying out of the room in her stocking soles without looking back. For once Esme didn't seem inclined to press her whole family eats together rule upon them.

"Don't worry, darling," said Esme, in a calm voice, living a first small forkful of food to her mouth and making him wait while she chewed, swallowed and put the fork back down again, "it will be a struggle but we'll make sure that the girl is looked after financially while you're away at college."

"I'm not going to college," said Edward. Esme remained composed but Carlisle's eyes widened, along with his nostrils and Edward could tell from the way the vein in his forehead was pumping that his father was holding on to his sanity with a thread. Taking a deep breath and trying to tell himself that this was like pulling off a band-aid and that the worst would soon be over he steeled himself and continued. "I'm going to marry Bella." Carlisle's reaction was instantaneous, thumping the table with a balled fist hard enough that the dishes moved this time and rising to his feet as if his anger was morphing him into something too large to be trapped by the confines of a table and chair.

"Enough," he yelled, placing his palms flat on the table and leaning over toward Edward. "We all make mistakes but if you give up college and your future for her then that one mistake is going to screw up your whole future. Think, Edward, think!"

"I've done nothing but think about it," said Edward, gently. Carlisle's eyes bulged but he reigned himself in to let his son continue. "Bella would be happy for me to go off to college but I can't leave her behind all alone with a new baby. I want to marry her and live with her as my wife."

"And how will you live?" spat Carlisle.

"I'll find a job," said Edward, conveniently glossing over the fact that he was still an eighteen year old schoolboy and that he had no idea about what sort of work he could possibly do. "I've got a few ideas for a business of my own as well."

"You can't marry a girl like her," snapped Carlisle, "you just can't."

"Because she's from Greenburgh?" asked Edward, trying to stay calm.

"No," yelled Carlisle, shaking his head, "because there's something unnatural about the way that she's got hold of you. It's like she's the earth and you're the moon and nothing that anybody says will disrupt the hold she has on you." He stood for a moment, staring at Edward, gripping and ungripping his fists. "Also, yes, now that you ask the question the Greenburgh thing is also a factor." His voice lowered, not shouting now but still dangerous. "Her father is an unemployed layabout and she's lost her mother. I'll bet marrying into this family looks like a pretty good outcome for her. The perfect reason to trap you with a bastard baby."

"I've told you before," said Edward, sinking back onto the hard wooden back of his chair and pushing his hands through his hair in exasperation, "Charlie did lose his job when the plant shut down but now he's joined the police force." Nobody spoke, so he continued, a defiant tilt to his chin. "Plus, I'm going to marry her before the baby comes so technically our child won't be a bastard."

"Still," said Esme, pouring more Chianti into her wine glass as calmly as if they were sitting in a fine restaurant enjoying a civil meal, "the Swans are hardly a Forks family." She glanced at Carlisle and filled his glass too, quietly urging the visibly seething man to join her. He sat heavily back down in his seat, drinking deeply from the glass. "You do understand," continued Esme carefully, taking a sip of her own wine and taking in her son's figure with narrowed eyes above the rim, "that we can have nothing to do with her or the baby?"

"Knock, knock." It was Alice, her head popping around the door before he had a chance to respond or tell her to go away. Edward threw the ball that was grasped in his hand again, ricocheting it off the wall and then the ceiling before catching it against his chest with two hands.

"Sorry," he said, slipping the ball into his bedside drawer with a sheepish smile, "I forgot that you would be trying to sleep upstairs."

"As if I would be sleeping after what happened tonight," said Alice, smirking just a little.

"I don't want to talk about it," grimaced Edward. He was lying on top of the bedclothes, still in the same clothes that he had been wearing at dinner earlier.

"You probably should," said Alice sensibly. He noticed that she was in her nightdress, arms wrapped around herself against the cold.

"Come on, get in then," sighed Edward, moving his feet so that she could slide onto the foot of the bed, leaning against the wall and pulling an ancient native American patterned wool blanket around her. There was only eighteen months between Edward and Alice and although she was the oldest it had always been her that had crept downstairs from her spacious attic room into his cosy space so that they could play after lights out, or sit in the darkness trying to eavesdrop on one of Esme's famous dinner parties playing out in the dining room below. Although Alice was safely enrolled at Stanford with a parentally approved Southern gentleman of a boyfriend in tow, it was not lost on either of them that Carlisle's hopes and dreams stayed firmly directed at his son.

"You're breaking Dad's heart." said Alice, after a few moments of companionable silence.

"I know," said Edward. He took the ball out of his drawer again, throwing it harder than necessary at the wall and catching it as it rebounded from the ceiling. He threw it again and this time Alice caught it, her quick single hand catch reminding him that Alice had always been slightly better at everything than Edward, even sports, until he got big and strong enough to finally outrun and outbat her. "Why can't they understand that not everybody has to be like them? That not every life has to go down that path that they have predetermined?"

"It's all they've ever known," said Alice, tossing the ball at the ceiling and smiling in pleasure as Edward caught it on the way back down. "Grandad was a doctor too, as was his father before him. They've all gone to college, met suitable young ladies and come back to Forks to procreate."

"Well, maybe I'm not like them," said Edward, tossing the ball to Alice again via the wall behind his head.

"No," smiled Alice, rolling the ball in her hand in quiet contemplation, "you're very like Mother, and therein lies the problem."

"I am?" he said.

"You are," said Alice, bringing her gaze from the ball up to his face with a little smile. "You've both got a steel core that people don't always notice under the mild mannered exterior."

He looked at her with furrowed forehead, thinking, intrigued by her assessment of the situation. She smiled at the look on his face and threw the ball with a swift little movement that he didn't see until it plopped into the pillow beside his head and rolled onto the floor, where neither of them bothered to retrieve it. "Dad and me, we're volatile, see?" Edward nodded, having been on the receiving end of plenty of her temper tantrums over the years. "But what you see is what you get. When we're angry we're just angry. We'll tell you exactly why and sound off for a bit but when it's over, it's over." He looked away from her, glancing at the ball, contemplating picking it up again. "You and our Mother are different. People, and I include myself in this, they don't always know what you're thinking. Some people mistake it for being laid back or just not caring. They don't see the steely resolve just under the surface. They don't sense the danger lurking underneath."

"I'm not dangerous," scoffed Edward.

"Metaphorical danger, you idiot," she said, kicking his leg with a swift, sharp motion, her imperious voice reminding him that she was taking an English major. "You take everything in, you never miss a detail and most of all you never forget."

"When you put it like that..." said Edward.

"What I'm scared of," said Alice suddenly, fixing him with a wide eyed plea that he hadn't seen since they were very young, "is that you and Mother end up not speaking ever again because of this."

"I'm sure it won't come to that," said Edward, frowning. The way that Alice looked at him confirmed that he didn't sound as convincing as he hoped. "What do you think of Bella?" he asked, deliberately changing the subject.

"I don't really know," replied Alice, shrugging her shoulders dismissively. "I like her, I guess."

"You guess?" queried Edward, picking up on the last two words of her sentence.

"Yeah, I guess," she confirmed. "Bella just always seems so..." she struggled to find the words, "reserved," she said firmly, finally settling on the correct adjective, "she's very reserved. I've not known her for long so I don't know if that is because she lost her Mother recently or if that's just what she's like." In truth, Edward didn't have the answer to that question himself. She was always composed, unflappable, a stoic face on in the face of the world no matter what she was feeling inside. But when he was with her she was so different. She demanded attention, that was true, expecting Edward to be focused on her completely. But then her reserve dropped away and he got the feeling that she let him see her more vulnerable and open than anybody else in the world. It was completely intoxicating and he revelled in the heady knowledge that he was the only person who got to enjoy her at her carefree, natural best.

"Will you try?" asked Edward.

"To be friends with her?"

"Yes," he replied, "I'd like there to be at least one friendly face in this family.

"Of course I will," said Alice, putting a warm comforting hand on his sock clad foot. "I'll make her as welcome as I can."

* * *

"As I recall," said Edward, evenly, "you weren't a great advocate of me marrying Bella either."

"We've been over this, bud," said Emmett, trying to dismiss the subject although his cheeks flushed red as soon as Edward raised the subject. "You were eighteen and scared as hell, I just didn't want you thinking that the Victorian England solution of marrying her and setting up a little home together was the only solution."

"It was for me," said Edward.

"I got that eventually," replied Emmett, "it just took me a while to realise that you were deadly serious about the whole thing. As I recall, once I understood that you weren't to be swayed I was very supportive."

"You were," smiled Edward. "It was a pity that the midterms meant that you missed the wedding, I still regret that you weren't there as my best man."

"That was one day, bud," he said, not meeting Edward's eye, "I hope that I've made up for it over the years as Renesmee's godfather."

"You have."

"Right," said Emmett, clearly keen to change the subject. "Why don't you show me some of these recordings and I'll try to help you make sense of things?"

"Show you...?"

"Yes, you douche," exclaimed Emmett, "I don't want to perv on Bella's or anything, I just want to get a feel for what's happening and the dynamic between them. You know, to help you decide what to do about it."

"Fine," said Edward. "Grab another beer from the kitchen on the way and I'll get the laptop fired up."

"Oh my lord," breathed Emmett as he materialised at Edward's side. Edward was frozen, watching the two figures moving on the black and white screen. Bella was on top of Jacob, his cock presumably buried deep inside her, the sheets wrapped loosely around her waist. They were pressed together, lips and tongues as intertwined as the areas buried under the covers. He held her tight to him, controlling the pace, keeping their love-making tantalisingly slow.

"I thought you said there was a power cut?" queried Emmett.

"There is," said Edward, "but that camera has got a six hour battery back-up."

"There's no way they could know that, is there?"

"No," confirmed Edward with a terse shake of his head, "I didn't even know until I found it on and checked out the instruction manual.

"So," said Emmett, his mouth moving into a grim line, "they don't know that you're watching?"

"No. Impossible."

"Shit, Edward, you've got problems." Edward didn't speak, just stared at the screen, transfixed by the couple in front of him. "Jeez," said Emmett, dropping the beer bottles onto Edward's desk, the sudden clunk of glass against wood jarring Edward out of his momentary stupor, "do I need to spell it out to you? Look at the way they're moving. Do you see the eye contact? The kissing? The holding? You are literally watching your wife fall in love with another man."


	14. Chapter 14

"Which way?" asked Emmett as they sped out of Seattle on the interstate. The torrential rain kept other drivers to a minimum but also kept progress slow. Nevertheless both men could feel the urgency and Emmett was driving Edward's powerful Jaguar as fast as he could safely do so.

"Um, follow the interstate past another three exits," said Edward, trying to visualise the route in his head but struggling due to the distracting squeaky wave of the windscreen wipers working at full capacity, "then take the mountain road until I tell you to turn off." Emmett nodded his understanding, gripping the steering wheel with grim determination while Edward stared out of the passenger side window.

"What are you going to do when we arrive?"

"I don't know," admitted Edward, "tell her I'm sorry?" He looked at Emmett, puppy dog eyes begging his friend to comfort him, to tell him that sorry would be enough. Emmett glanced at him for a moment then turned his eyes back to the road, his strong arm braced straight against the steering wheel. "Try my best to get her to come home with me I guess." Edward was talking to himself now, muttering to his dark reflection in the car window, broken up as it was by a million little droplets of rain. "I gave away any right to be angry at her when I set up the whole sordid little scenario."

* * *

"I need a shower," said Bella with a tired, self-indulgent smile. The sweat evaporating from her hot flesh was making her cool down rapidly in the chill night air. As if he could tell what she was thinking Jacob pulled the bedclothes up over their naked bodies, cocooning them deliciously in soft sheets ripe with the musk of their mingled scents.

"How do you fancy making it a bath?" He buried his head in her hair, planting an absent-minded kiss on the top of her head and wrapping his arm even tighter around her. "That tub has plenty of room for the both of us."

"Sounds great." Her body mourned his loss immediately as his warm bulk slipped out of bed, her hand instinctively moving to the cosy space that he left behind. Stark naked, he picked up a candle in each hand and took them into the bathroom, placing them on the shelf beside the tub to provide some illumination. There was a mirror behind the shelf and the light multiplied in the small space, an infinity of warm candlelight. There was a splash of water as the tub started to fill from the dramatic standalone taps and an exotic fragrance, presumably from one of the expensive bottles that had been placed theatrically on the side, floated into her nose in soft waves.

"Ready," he said, reappearing in the doorway after a few moments, the soft candlelight making his body a soft lit silhouette. "The water's perfect." The sound of running water ceased and Bella suddenly became aware of how quiet the house was now that the storm had abated. She threw the covers back, steeling herself against the cold air. Instinct was for her to cover herself up but he was so unabashed in his nakedness that she walked across the room, feigning a confidence that became real after the first, few tentative steps. He met her at the threshold of a bathroom with a chivalrous hand, planting an affectionate little kiss on the back of her hand before leading her to the bathtub. He helping her into the water then sat down himself, guiding her between his legs so that she was leaning back against his warm body instead the back of the tub. He was right, the tub was huge and there was plenty of room for them both. She relaxed back against his prone form, the hot scented water coming up almost to her breasts. Jacob sighed happily behind her, putting two protective arms around her. She could feel a heart beating in the quiet, not quite sure if it was her heart or his and not caring either way. Her body was tired and the activity in her brain finally started to slow in the quiet womb-like space.

* * *

Bella was supposed to be at an after school club but the morning sickness that had racked her body at all hours of the day for the first three months of the pregnancy had returned with a vengeance and she had hurried home from school and away from curious eyes before creeping into bed and curling up in the foetal position. Charlie had come home some time ago from an early shift at the police station but she felt too nauseous to even get out of bed and tell him that she was home. Every day she convinced herself that Charlie would finally notice the growing bump nestled under multiple layers of winter clothes. Instead, the still grieving man went through the motions of life with his eyes closed, escaping into himself and that black bottle every night, swaddling himself in grief and weeping quietly until he fell asleep in his worn armchair with the blaring television his only companion. She was going to have to tell him, and soon. Yet the thought of his face as she broke his heart anew so soon after the loss of Renee brought her out in a cold sweat.

Knock, knock. After a short hesitation she heard the movement of the springs in his seat as Charlie got to his feet and answered the door.

"Mr Swan?" Bella stiffened as she recognised Edward's voice. What on earth was he doing here? She hadn't told him that she was coming home.

"You might as well call me Charlie," said her father's voice, "you've been hanging around my daughter long enough that we should probably be on first name terms."

"Charlie then," said Edward, his voice sounding startlingly mature to her ear, "can I come in?"

There was a tangible pause before Charlie replied to the sudden rush of adrenaline that coursed through her body suppressed the nausea enough to let her sit up, swinging her bare feet over the side of the bed and rising a little unsteadily to her feet. She could hear the two men talking downstairs in low voices and she had to hear what they were saying. The door of her bedroom was already ajar and she slipped out and onto the upstairs landing, moving downstairs one step at a time until the voices came into focus.

"Marry my daughter?" Charlie's voice rose to a level that she would have been able to hear from upstairs. "You're seventeen, why...?" His voice trailed off.

"She's pregnant," replied Edward, so quietly that she could barely hear him, confirming Charlie's worst fears as a parent. There was a scuffling noise, presumably Charlie getting to his feet then a loud gasp that sounded a lot like Edward being hurt. She tensed, ready to jump to his defence, yet the noise stopped as suddenly as it started.

"I'm," began Charlie in a weak, strangled voice. "I'm..." The springs groaned as he sank weakly into his armchair again.

"I know," replied Edward, absolving the other man of his momentary lapse into violence. "I know." The silence between them stretched out, a million unanswered questions. It was Edward who started the conversation again. "I want to let you know today that I love your daughter and I'm not going to leave her."

"That's what you say now," said Charlie, wearily, "but when all your friends are at college and having fun you'll feel differently."

"I won't," replied Edward, vehemently, "please don't underestimate how I feel about Bella."

"I guess," laughed Charlie, a harsh noise laced with bitterness, "that you'll have a lifetime to prove yourself."

"I don't need a lifetime," said Edward. "Listen Charlie, don't take this the wrong way but you've been a wreck since Renee died and Bella is frankly terrified to tell you about this baby."

"And?"

"And," said Edward, softly, but with a hint of steel that reverberated her through her body like an off key note, "at some point she's going to tell you and I need you to keep it together. We're all that she has in this world and her biggest fear at the moment is disappointing you. The sooner that we can get past that the sooner we can start planning our life together." The two men continued talking in low voices but she had heard enough, slinking back upstairs and back onto the bedspread, this time lying flat on her back staring at the ceiling. Edward had just jumped in front of a speeding bullet for her, taking the brunt of Charlie's anger and giving him time to prepare for Bella telling him directly about the baby. And as for marriage? They had talked about it idly but in reality she didn't feel that she deserved to marry him. He deserved an education, a career, a chance to enjoy life away from the small world that encompassed Greenburgh and Forks. She loved him so much that she was willing to let him go to make sure that he lived up to his promise. Yet he seemed determined to frustrate her efforts to release him and now that she had asked Charlie for her hand in marriage he had started them down a path that it would be hard to turn away from.

* * *

Bella must have dozed off but when Jacob's body stiffened behind her she woke up with a start.

"What is it?" she asked, groggy but immediately aware that something was wrong.

"Car headlights," said Jacob. "I don't know why anybody would be out here so late at night." She sat up, making the water slosh around. It was getting colder, the attraction starting to wear off. "I'll go investigate," he said, pulling himself out of the water in one swift move and grabbing a towel, running it over his body in an efficient movement before dropping it on the floor and walking into the bedroom nude, treating her to a full length view of his delectable rear view in the candlelight.

"Do you want me to come with you?" she said.

"No," he looked over his shoulder and grinned cheekily at her, "you stay right here, just like that," he nodded his head at her naked form, "and I'll get back to you as soon as I can." She slumped back into the water, watching in the dim light as he rooted in the drawer beside the bed and pulled out yet another pair of his trademark tight black trunks. With these on he padded out of earshot, the little LED torch in hand but not actually turned on.

Bang. She felt her own body stiffen at the unmistakable sound of a car door slamming, followed by a second virtually identical bang. She rose out of the bath quickly, grabbing a soft fluffy towel from the rack at the side. She scrubbed herself half dry then stepped out of the water, wrapping the white length securely round her torso. If somebody else was here she sure as hell wasn't just going to sit in the bath and let them find her, naked and vulnerable. Leaving the candles burning she walked barefoot back into the bedroom, suddenly feeling the threat of the open door leading into the cold darkness of the hallway. With one eye on the door at all times she started picking her clothes up from the bedroom floor. The panties were damp to the touch and she dropped them back onto the floor in disgust, deciding that going without was a better option than putting them back on. She found her jeans and pulled them on gratefully under the towel. She located her T-shirt next, followed closely by the bra. She turned her back to the door, as if invisible eyes in the darkness could see her and dropped the towel to the floor, hooking on her bra then pulling on the T-shirt as fast as she possibly could. The soft cotton clung to her still damp body but she still felt better with it on. There was a hair bauble in the pocket of her jeans and she ussed it to tie her hair into a loose ponytail, the weight of the wet ends weighing it down against her back. She was glad to pull the hoodie on and zip it safely up to provide an extra barrier. She knew where her shoes were although she could only find one sock. Sighing as another scan of the carpet and a quick exploration of the underside of the bed yielded no sock she stuffed the loner in her pocket and slipped her bare feet into Converse trainers. She rose, poised to go, before pausing for a moment to scoop up the wet panties and stuff them in another pocket before creeping down the stairs as silently as she could.

"Well, well, well." The external door was ajar and as she arrived downstairs into the hallway she could see Jacob's form on the front porch of the cabin, seemingly impervious to the cold as he stood barefoot, legs planted wide and his arms crossed across his chest. "What brings you boys up to Cullen's Cabin this late at night?"

"It is my cabin," came Edward's voice. Bella's heart nearly stopped. What was he doing here in the middle of the night? Had he come to try to take her home? She took a step closer to the door, greedily scanning the darkness for the figure of her husband. She exhaled sharply when she saw him, as she always did when she hadn't set eyes upon him for a while. He was quite exquisite, a pale jewel glittering in the darkness, his face a chiselled marble perfection. His blonde hair was pushed back off his face, accentuating his cheekbones. He was simply dressed in dark denim jeans and a v-neck sweater. It was dark, yet she suspected that it was the pale blue cashmere sweater that she loved on him for the way that it contrasted with his light hazel eyes and how the planes of his slim, toned body felt with the luxurious material draped over it. She longed in that moment to touch him, to feel the familiar shape of his collar bone, to run her hands down his back, to tuck her head into the curve of his neck. The feeling was almost physical in strength.

"I've come to take Bella home," said Edward calmly, taking a couple of steps toward Jacob. Her stomach thrilled.

"What if she doesn't want to go home?" said Jacob, standing stock still, seemingly unperturbed by facing strangers in only his underwear. "Have you thought to ask her? She's been having a pretty good time here, but then, I guess you saw that."

"We did," growled Emmett's unmistakable voice. His bulk came into her field of vision when he took a threatening step forward, halting only when Edward put a warning hand on his arm.

"Yes, we saw," said Edward softly, "quite a show that you put on tonight."

"Just like you asked," said Jacob and even though she couldn't see his face she could hear the self satisfied tone in his voice and imagine the smirk that went with it.

How, she thought, had Edward and Emmett been able to see what was going on tonight during the power cut? Emmett wasn't her favourite person at the best of times, how could Edward have shared something so personal with him? And more importantly, why wasn't Jacob more surprised that they had been watching? She cast her mind back to earlier and mentally kicked herself as she remembered the strange way that Jacob was acting when she came out of the bathroom. He had tricked her; made her think that the camera was off so that she would let herself go. Mentally she kicked herself for believing his lie about the red light being simply the reflection of the candles. This, she thought, changes everything. Bella had always known what she was doing, taking an active part in her downfall. Yet now the stakes had changed, far from being an informed and active participant she was reduced to a pawn, a trophy in a power struggle between two alpha males.

The rational part of her brain argued that tonight didn't make a blind bit of difference as Edward had been at home watching the whole time anyway. Yet the emotional part of her brain told her that wasn't quite true, that she had always held a part of herself back when she knew that Edward was watching. That reserve had been eroded tonight and she had given her all to Jacob, physically and emotionally. She could handle the thought of Edward seeing her with another man, after all, he had orchestrated the whole thing, yet somehow she was disgusted that he had seen their intimacy.

"You've held up your end of the bargain," said Edward, sounding every inch the professional CEO that he was, "so I'll still hold up mine, of course. Triple and the magazine spread. I'm sure that completion will be much faster with the distraction that is my wife out of the way."

"I wouldn't expect anything else from a gentleman," Jacob stressed the word gentleman in a voice laced with sarcasm. "But, has it crossed your mind that Bella might not want to be dragged back to Seattle?"

"Has it crossed your mind," replied Edward coolly, brushing a piece of imaginary lint from his sleeve, a distractionary tactic that she had seen many times before in the boardroom, "that my wife has taken advantage of you and is now ready to be taken back to Seattle." Emmett chuckled at the slight.

"Has it crossed your mind," retorted Jacob, his voice rising, the first hint of anger making itself evident, "that your wife has had the time of her life fucking me and that downgrading back to boring married sex is not going to cut it?"

"Has it crossed your mind..." began Edward calmly.

Freaking hell, thought Bella, this could go on all night. They were standing off because of her, trading a war of words over who deserved to take her home yet neither of them seemed fit to think about what she actually wanted. Perhaps she should be flattered? But as soon as the thought crossed her mind she dismissed it. How could she be flattered at the thought of two grown men fighting over like some toy in the playground. She had to get out of there, it had to be fast, and she had to buy herself some time to think.

Slinking silently backwards into the darkness of the hallway she felt her way to the bottom of the stairs and found the strap of her handbag, hanging over the lintel post where it had been carelessly slung on the way in when it had seemed ridiculous for her lips to be anywhere else but stuck to Jacob. She didn't have to put her hand inside to know that her purse, mobile phone and car keys were in there. Her hastily formulated plan relied on the element of surprise so she couldn't stop to pick anything else up. She sneaked through one of the doors and into the living room, where the new French doors were now in place. She turned the lock and stepped outside into the dark night. She could hear the boys arguing at the front of the house, still unaware of her presence. There were wooden stairs leading down from the deck to the space under the house and she crept down as quietly as she could. Her Miata was under the house beside Jacob's Ford and she could see the unmistakable shape of Edward's Jaguar in the sloped turning space nearby.

She had planned to let down both sets of tyres but when she saw Jacob's tools scattered carelessly in the back of his truck a new, ferocious idea gripped her mind. She picked out a chisel, sharp and about an inch wide. She pushed it into the tyre of the F150 but nothing happened. Using two hands and most of her bodyweight she pulled it out and aimed again, thrusting as hard as she could into approximately the same spot. This time she was rewarded with an audible pop and as she pulled the chisel out the tyre started deflating immediately. She paused for a moment, seriously considering using the chisel to make some choice markings in the shiny red paintwork. It was only the pressing fear that she wouldn't have time to make an escape that stopped her from doing it.

She slunk across the road to the Jaguar, glad of that the fact that Edward and Emmett were still at the front door of the house out of sight. The Jaguar tyres weren't as knobbly as the ones on the Ford and they gave way at her first attempt. When the front passenger side tyre had deflated she walked tall, striding rather than creeping back to the Miata, enjoying the loud sound of her footsteps crunching on the gravel in the still air. She unlocked the car with the remote key fob, aware that the beep and the flash of the lights would give her away. As soon as she was in the driver's seat the key was in the ignition and the engine on. She revved the engine and sped out from under the house and down the lane toward the main road, never once looking toward the front of the house.

Driving away, she couldn't resist a swift look in the rear view mirror, an action that yielded an image that she would never forget. Edward, seeing her but not chasing her, standing unflappable in the road like a statue. Emmett flanking him, probably cursing given the way that he was dancing around from foot to foot and shaking his arm. Last of all there was Jacob, still on the porch in his underwear, running a few steps down the stairs and along the driveway toward her before realising that the car was moving too fast for him to get anywhere near. Even at this distance he looked crestfallen.

As she pulled out of the single track lane onto the main road the Miata fishtailed a little, the rear wheel drive struggling to grip in the wet before the tyres bit down on the road again. Her stomach lurched, a mix of fear and elation. She put her foot down, urging the little car faster than was technically safe for these mountain roads after the recent storm, determined to leave the cabin and her problems as far behind as possible.


	15. Chapter 15

"Would you like us to stay and help you with your own tyre?" asked Edward courteously, popping the box of locking wheel nuts for the Jaguar back into the space below the spare wheel cavity and slamming the boot shut. His blue cashmere sweater, the soft colour coming to life in the impending dawn was already filthy. Inspecting the dirty garment he sighed, gave in to the inevitable, and wiped his dirty hands clean on the soft fabric.

"No thanks," said Jacob wearily, too tired to be hostile any more. "I'll change the wheel myself in the morning," he looked at the first rays of watery sunlight illuminating the clearing, suddenly realising that morning was closer than he had expected, "well, when I've had a couple of hours sleep anyway."

The argument between the men petered out when Bella drove away and each realised that he didn't have the means to follow her. Jacob had even helped Edward and Emmett change the tyre, adding his muscle to push the Jaguar up from the steep driveway onto a flat bit of the clearing so that they could jack it up safely, then providing hot steaming cups of coffee and chocolate biscuits after Emmett growled that they didn't need his help at all.

"Thank you for your help this evening," said Edward. Jacob looked at him, folding his arms across his chest. Although the night had been cold his only concession to covering up had been slinging on shorts and a wife beater before helping push the car. Edward wondered whether he felt the cold at all and studiously tried not to stare at Jacob's work hardened arms.

"Um, no problem," replied Jacob, staring back at him suspiciously, clearly not sure whether his intention was genuine.

"I'm sure that Bella will be at home by now," Edward said, fixing Jacob with what he hoped was a confident gaze.

"What," began Jacob, a half smile twisting his mouth into something more dangerous, "makes you so sure that she's not packing a bag and getting ready to get the hell out of Dodge?"

"I know my wife," said Edward, slowly.

"Well," said Jacob, uncrossing his arms and taking a couple of steps towards Edward. Edward pulled himself up to this full height automatically, hating his instincts in that moment for squaring up against the taller, broader man as if he was some sort of stone age man. "I don't know what kind of weird ass relationship you guys have but if Bella was my girl I wouldn't let her out of sight, and I certainly wouldn't set up some seedy scenario where I asked some guy to fuck her right in front of me so that I could get my rocks off."

"Jacob," said Edward, letting out a strangled surge of air that sounded suspiciously close to the stifled start of a laugh, "you're so young, you still have such a simplistic view of women and marriage." Edward could almost feel the other man bristling at this perceived slight and he hurriedly continued. "Nevertheless even if you don't understand our current predicament I trust that you won't try to pursue my wife whilst we're sorting our marriage out?"

"I'm not a complete A-hole," said Jacob, looking at Edward in a manner that made absolutely clear that he thought that there was one in the immediate vicinity. "I'll give you both room to do whatever it is that you need to do. But," he cautioned, taking another step towards Edward and lowering his voice, "I won't turn her away if she comes to me of her own volition."

"That's fair," said Edward, holding out his hand to Jacob. After a moments hesitation the other man took it and Edward tried to ignore the rough texture which somehoew seemed to imply without words that Edward was weak, an office man. Emmett walked back into view from the house and Edward and Jacob instinctively took a step back from each other.

"Ready to go?" asked Emmett, not bothering to hide his disdain of Jacob.

"Definitely," replied Edward. Without further ado they got back into the Jaguar and purred silently off into the night.

* * *

The initial thrill of driving too fast down the mountain roads wore off quickly, leaking away steadily along with the adrenaline of the escape. By the time that she pulled onto the interstate Bella's eyes were barely open and she knew that she had to stop. She pulled into a twenty four hour gas station and filled the Miata's tank, buying a large coffee in a styrofoam cup and some chocolate. She knew that Edward would probably have his tyre changed by now, pursuing her through the breaking dawn. What she didn't know is what would happen when he reached her. They'd hit bumps in their marriage previously, what couple didn't? Yet the complicity of both parties in this audacious turn of events raised a huge series of question marks.

Feeling slightly more alive with the first few sips of coffee safely in her bloodstream she climbed back into the Miata, opened the windows to let the cold air flood in and fiddled the knob on the radio until she found some bass heavy dance music to reverberate through the speakers, before pulling out of the gas station and back onto the road. With the upbeat tunes and the pink and yellow streaky fingers of summer dawn spreading across the sky she felt immediately better. Everything that had happened with Jacob had happened with Edward's blessing. Surely, if he had come up there to take her home he still wanted her? He must still love her? She had done everything that he wanted, hadn't she? If he had been watching then he couldn't have had time for Jessica? Yet, even as those simple thoughts passed through her brain she suspected that the repercussions would ripple much further than the initial splash.

* * *

Edward

I had to wash the sheets again. I've put in for an hours overtime.

Flora

Bella stared at the note. Her whole world was quite literally crashing around her ears but all she could do was stand still and stare at the words. Simple but pointed. Bella didn't need to have a college degree to work out that Edward had been sleeping with Jessica in their bed while she was away. Why else would the housekeeper have had to wash the sheets multiple times? All of the remorse that she had built up on the journey back to Seattle spiked into white hot anger.

"That bitch," she muttered to herself, "she's been looking at a way to get back at me since High School." She threw the note down onto the floor but it floated, calm as a feather, stoking rather than relieving her anger. She picked it up again, scrunched it into a tight little ball and threw it onto the floor. The quiet little pop as it hit the floor and bounced once before rolling to a stop was not any more satisfying. The mania within her was rising, a red tide that demanded to be slaked. She looked around the hallway, wide eyed and panting before noticing the mirror on the wall. Grasping it firmly with two hands she picked it up, tottering for a moment under the heavy weight before dropping it to the floor. The carpet was plush, underpinned by thick underlay and she screamed in frustration as it dropped to the floor with a soft whump, landing quite undamaged. She wished that Edward's Jaguar was parked outside so that she could pour paint stripper onto it.

"Hells Bells, get a hold of yourself," she muttered, taking deep breaths in through her nose and letting them out through her mouth until her heart rate slowed to a normal level, just like the therapist had taught her to do. Deciding that criminal damage, whilst initially satisfying, would not achieve anything, she strode up to the bedroom, pulled a suitcase from the closet and started filling it with clothes.

* * *

"I think," said Edward carefully, keeping his eyes on the road, "that this started when Bella had her affair." He felt rather than saw his friend's bulk stiffen beside him.

"When was that?" enquired Emmett, eventually.

"You don't seem very surprised," snapped Edward, immediately sorry for the tone in which he had spoken to his friend.

"After what I've seen and heard this evening," said Emmett, pointedly, "nothing is going to surprise me."

"Well," Edward was aware that his voice sounded a little whiney, but he didn't have the energy to censor himself, "I haven't told anybody else because it's not technically her fault."

"Not her fault?" parroted Emmett, turning in his seat to face Edward. "Did you force her to fuck another man? Who was it this time? The gardener, a pizza boy?"

"Don't be flippant," cautioned Edward, "it was nothing like that."

"What was it like?"

"It was around the time that I had Tanya as my PA."

"Tanya!" exclaimed Emmett. "The hot Alaskan chick?"

"That's the one," said Edward, ruefully. "She was an excellent PA."

"She was an excellent fuck too," said Emmett, "as I recall."

"Something that I wouldn't know," said Edward, taking his eyes off the road for the briefest of moments to give Emmett a knowing look. "Bella wouldn't have it though, she got insanely jealous, checking my phone constantly, waiting up for me to come home from the office, dropping in at random times."

"I didn't have Bella pegged as the jealous type," said Emmett, a frown creasing the smooth expanse of his forehead.

"With Bella it's not obvious, you know? She goes about her life as normal but underneath she was seething and when I didn't pick up on little suggestions that she made about finding a new PA or not requiring one at all then things came to a head pretty quickly. I came home early one evening and found her with another man, some hipster guy that she had picked up at the cheese bar."

"Sorry, mate," said Emmett, breathing out loudly, "that sucks." Then after a moment's contemplation. "What the fuck's a cheese bar?"

"She did it to get back at me," said Edward, plaintively, ignoring Emmett's question, "she could barely even look at him when I got in, she was more concerned by my reaction. The whole thing had clearly been set up so that I would find them."

"What did you do?"

"Well, the first thing that I did was let Tanya go." Emmett raised an eyebrow. "Oh, don't look at me like that," snapped Edward, right back at him, "if she was the source of Bella's insecurity it just wasn't worth having her around any more."

"And then?"

"And then I bought Bella a diamond tennis bracelet to say sorry and took her and Renesmee to the Caribbean for spring break."

"So what does she get this time? An eternity ring? An Aston Martin? A private island."

"Nothing," said Edward, "she wasn't meant to know about this plan or me watching."

"Okay," said Emmett, massaging the bridge of his nose with one hand. "I know plenty of married people and when one party has an affair it tends to be make or break. Either they part ways immediately or they work harder at their marriage and eventually get over the bump."

"Well, it definitely started as the latter. She was so, so sorry, completely horrified by what the jealousy had driven her to. With Tanya safely out the way it felt like we were on a second honeymoon," he smiled, lit by the internal warmth of his memory, "endless sex, amazing cooking, spending every spare moment together..."

"Didn't last long?" enquired Emmett.

"No," Edward shook his head sadly. "One night we were in the bedroom and I was just lying on the bed, staring at the ceiling and trying to get my breath back after an amazing session." Emmett nodded, but didn't say anything, giving Edward the space to continue. "She was ready to go again and she started touching me, you know?" Emmett grunted that he understood. "Well, I was knackered, I mean completely worn out and it just wasn't going to happen. It happens, right?" Emmett grunted again, slightly non-committal this time, the look on his face suggesting that it wasn't an area where he had problems. "I tried to tell her but she kept touching me, trying to get it up again. When nothing happened she took it as a personal affront and flounced off in the huff."

"Women," muttered Emmett, companionably.

"I can't explain why but it really dented my confidence. Every time we started to get intimate after that I started to worry about whether I would be able to perform. She didn't help, tossing the occasional snide remark in my direction about not fancying her, which, by the way, couldn't be further from the truth."

"So," said Emmett, filling in the blanks, "you pretty much stopped doing it at all?"

"Yes."

"Oh hell, that's not good Cullen."

"No, and that's about the time that I started using webcams."

"Webcams?"

"Yes, you know those websites..."

"I wasn't born yesterday," cut in Emmett, "of course I know what internet porn is."

"It was just easier," said Edward, "to log on and get one of those girls spread her legs for me than it was to run the gamut of trying to satisfy Bella."

"That is so fucked up."

"All men look at porn," said Edward, quickly, defensively.

"Unless you're some forty year old saddo who wears a raincoat and still lives with his Mom then it's generally a supplement, rather than an alternative to a sex life with an actual female."

"Oh God," moaned Edward, gripping and ungripping the wheel with his hands in agitation, "you're not making me feel any better."

"Does Bella know?"

"What? That I look at porn?" He shrugged his shoulders. "Probably. I don't make much of an effort to hide the sites and there are various subscriptions go through on my credit card bill."

"Shit, you just want to get caught, don't you?"

"No. Maybe." Emmett's silence was more an accusation than any question would be and Edward quickl cracked. "Oh, I suppose so. I guess that I just want things to go back to the way that we were."

"And this led you to the decision to set up the whole Cullen Cabin scenario?"

"Yeah. I thought that I would get the kicks out of watching her and that she would come back full of remorse."

"What do you think now?"

"I don't know," he paused, trying to order the myriad of thoughts worming their way around his head into some semblance of order but failing miserably. "Things haven't turned out as I expected."

"Well, that's an understatement," replied Emmett, settling down into his seat for the remaining drive to Seattle.

When they arrived back at the house Edward was surprised to see the house still in darkness and Bella's car nowhere to be seen. Letting himself in he immediately noticed signs that she had already been there. The mirror, undamaged, lay on the floor, on top of it a scrumpled piece of paper. Emmett got to it first and picked it up, smoothing it out until the words were readable again. He read them out loud.

"Edward

I had to wash the sheets again. I've put in for an hours overtime.

Flora"

"I thought you weren't hitting Jessica?" asked Emmett in confusion.

"I'm not," said Edward, taking the note from Emmett and groaning in anguish as he read the contents. "I forgot to take some sheets out of the dryer, that's all." He looked up at Emmett with liquid eyes, begging his friend to understand.

"With the benefit of a lifetime of history between us I know you're telling the truth," said Emmett, with a grimace, "but even I think that sounds just a little unlikely." Edward nodded, running his hands through his messy hair. "So," recapped Emmett, "you've got a crazy ass jealous wife who thinks that as well as setting her up a guilt free fuck with a contractor that you have used the spare time to fuck the PA, whom, by the way, she has history with." Edward's eyes widened but he didn't respond. "Now the crazy ass wife is missing and I'm guessing by the look on your face that you don't have a clue where she is?" Edward nodded, horrified by the truth of Emmett's hurtful and crude yet factually accurate assessment.

"Emmett," said Edward, urgently. "I need to find Bella and I need to find her fast."


	16. Chapter 16

"May I join you?" The man was medium sized and trim, close cropped black hair framing a square face accentuated by a sharp black goatee. He was dressed for business in a grey suit with a crisp white shirt unbuttoned at the neck. An expensive gold watch adorned his wrist. She hesitated for a moment, looking around the hotel bar. It was busy and there weren't many seats.

"Of course," she replied, giving him a tight smile. Bella had booked a table for dinner in the hotel restaurant but when they found that it was a table for one they suddenly couldn't accommodate her until nine. She had been sitting in the bar on her own for half an hour already. He sat down at ninety degrees to her and ordered a beer, indicating her own glass and enquirng whether she would like another. She shook her head.

"I'm Laurent," he said, fixing her with an apologetic grin and molten brown eyes. "I don't normally talk to strange women in bars but I'm here on business and I don't have anybody here to talk to that's not work related." His face fell a moment as he apparently realised what he had just said, "wait, I don't mean that you're strange..." Icebreaker, thought Bella, noting the self deprecating smile and the accidental insult that would give him the opportunity to flirt and make it up to her.

"No offence taken," said Bella, with a fake smile that Edward would have seen through immediately. Laurent took the movement at face value.

"Let me make it up to you...?"

"Bella," she replied.

"Let me make it up to you Bella." He waved the waitress back over, cancelled his beer and ordered a bottle of champagne and two glasses. He talked and flirted and chatted and she let herself be carried along by the wave of his enthusiasm. He didn't seem to notice the bland non-committal answers that she was giving to his questions and as he got drunker and moved onto bourbon he filled up more and more of the space between them with the sound of his own voice. She politely sipped her own glass of champagne, a spectator rather than a participant in his clumsy attempt at seduction.

"So," he said, leaning across the table toward her so that she got the full benefit of his smile and his expensive cologne. "What's a pretty girl like you doing in a place like this alone?" Bella looked down at the table for a moment, her hand automatically going to the white mark left behind on her ring finger.

"I'm just staying for a couple of days."

"Alone?" he queried.

"Yes," she replied, "my husband and I have temporarily separated." His body stiffened, as if he were a shark and she had just released a tell-tale drop of blood into the water. He knew that if he played it right that there would be a tasty morsel at the end of the process for him. She wasn't sure whether to fear what this apex predator was capable of or to pity him for the fact that despite his best efforts she knew exactly what each move he was making was intended to convey.

"Wow," he said, pulling his features into some semblance of a sympathetic face. "I'm sorry to hear that. Had you been married long?"

"Ten years."

"You don't look old enough," he said, running an appraising gaze from the top of her head down to the tips of her toes.

"We married at eighteen," she replied automatically.

"Has he been your only...?" he stopped himself, apparently realising how rude that line of questioning was. The thought crossed Bella's mind that it was the only genuine expression that she had seen on his face all night.

"My only lover? I met him at sixteen, of course." Her statement was accompanied by a harsh, slightly manic laugh.

"That's beautiful," breathed Laurent, bringing her back to the present. His interest had been piqued, she could tell, another man that coveted the thought of defiling an almost virgin. So predictable. They continued chatting and for a while she pretended to herself that she truly felt flattered by his attentions.

"We could be hours waiting for a table," he said finally, leaning across the table and dropping his voice to a conspirational whisper, "I've got a junior suite, why don't we head up there and order room service?"

It would be so easy, she thought, to go with him. To drink, to eat, to flirt, to take him to bed. He was pleasant enough and attractive, with a bit of alcoholic lubrication they would probably have fun. Edward deserved it, he deserved to be hurt in the same way that she was hurting. Why should she think twice about sleeping with another man when he had pushed her towards the liaison with Jacob? When he had used the opportunity to seduce Jessica? When he eschewed their marital bed for sleazy webcam girls?

"Thank you for the kind offer," she said, smoothly, "but I just want to have something to eat then get a good nights sleep." He opened his mouth and she knew that he was going to try to overcome her objections. "Alone," she said, with finality. He closed his mouth and immediately began to cast his eyes around the room for the waitress. Clearly it wasn't worth him investing any further resources into her if she wasn't going to put out at the end of it.

Suddenly she wasn't hungry any more. She fished in her purse and pulled out a fifty, dropping it on the table without a word to cover her wine and half of the champagne. He made to protest but she ignored him, rising to her feet and striding out of the bar with barely a word. She made it to the lift before her confident act crumbled and she slumped against the wall, cooling her wine flushed face against the cold metal wall as the lift climbed to the penthouse suite punctuated by bland happy background music.

Back in the relative safety of the anonymous suite she kicked her shoes off and made her way to the bathroom, standing in front of the mirror in her bare feet. There was a razor in the cupboard behind, safely surrounded by a plastic housing. Her fingers itched to break it free, to use the blade to release the pain that was building inside her. She lifted her left forearm, taking in the tiny clean feather thin scars, so fine and skilfully administered that nobody else would be able to see them. It had been Edward that had stopped her, Edward that had taught her to vocalise her feelings instead of falling back into the damaging cycle of internal pain and quiet self-harm that had characterised her teenage years. She had acted out when Renee first got sick, yet the disappointed looks that Charlie gave her hurt her so very badly that her behaviour quickly improved. It had been a revelation the first time she cut herself, a mark of ownership and control in a world where she had none.

She let her arm drop back to her side. Even though Edward wasn't here she had promised him that she would never damage herself like that again. Itching for distraction and some other means of self destruction she walked out into the living area and opened the minibar. She picked out a bottle of wine and a glass, opening the screw top and pouring the contents into a wine glass until it almost reached the brim. She brought the half full bottle with her and set it on the coffee table in preparation for a quick top up as she flopped down onto the squashy cushion. She had never felt so alone in her life, a rowing boat adrift on a sea of possibilities. Why, when she had everything that she ever wanted was she so hell bent on destroying it?

* * *

Edward lay in the grey light of the bedroom, the midday sun creeping around the dark shades of the blinds. He hadn't slept in three days but he couldn't relax. He was in the bed that he and Bella shared yet the freshly laundered sheets had eradicated any traces of her smell, giving the familiar object an alien feeling.

Ring, ring. The shrill tone of the bedside phone made him jump a little, interrupting his self indulgent train of thought.

"Charlie?" he barked as he snatched it from it's cradle.

"Is that Mr Cullen?" came an efficient female voice. His body sagged, disappointed that Charlie hadn't rung him back yet to confirm whether Bella was with him.

"Speaking," he spat.

"Mr Cullen, this is Stephanie from Amazing Dream Lingerie. I'm calling to apologise about the mix-up with your recent order."

"No need," replied Edward, getting ready to hang up, "it was delivered on time and everything that I ordered was in there."

"I'm afraid," said Stephanie, "that we sent a second package to the delivery address the next day by mistake."

"A second package?" he queried. "What was in it?" He could her the woman hesitate for a moment. "What was in it?" he growled.

"Um," said Stephanie, hesitating for a moment before falling back into pleasant efficiency, "some lingerie and sex toys. If they have not been opened we would be pleased to have our courier pick them up and of course, give you a gift credit to the value of the first order."

"Oh, they've been opened," said Edward. After the fun that Bella had had with the contents of the first parcel there was no way that she hadn't opened a second one arriving the very next day. "But I wasn't there when it was delivered so you're going to have to tell me exactly what was in it."

"One crotchless bodysuit in black latex. One lace crotchless and cupless bodysuit in purple. One butt dreams plug in pink, size large. One ball gag." He didn't wait to hear any more, just pressed the little red terminate button and slung it back into the cradle. He lay back down, slumping into the soft pillows and letting them cradle his body in a temporary womb of comfort. No wonder Bella was falling for Jacob if she thought that Edward was some sort of closet pervert. A closet pervert whom she also thought was sleeping with Jessica. Although the sun was in its zenith outside he couldn't help but feeling that his life and his marriage were entering their darkest and most dangerous phase yet.

Ring, ring. The phone rang again, almost before he was fully reclined.

"Hello?" he said, hesitantly, thinking that it might be the apologetic Stephanie again.

"Edward?"

"Kevin?" The operations manager never rang him at home.

"We've got a problem."

* * *

"Hello?"

"Mom, it's me."

"Edward." The voice down the phone was crisp, stating a fact.

"Bella's in labour."

"How lovely." Her voice made absolutely clear that she thought it was anything but lovely.

"She's been in labour for hours and the baby is distress. She's going in for an emergency C Section." Esme did not reply. "Will you and Dad come?"

"I don't think so." She hung up, suddenly and without warning. Edward sat down heavily in a plastic chair, the tired hospital waiting room coming back into sharp focus. He knew that Esme was angry with him. She hadn't come to the wedding and when Edward had chosen to move in with Charlie and Bella she took it as a personal affront, claiming that he had broken her heart. Carlisle was more reasonable. Whilst he couldn't risk Esme's ire by coming to the wedding he had taken Edward out for dinner two nights before on the pretext of working late at the hospital. Edward had almost cried when Carlisle gave him an envelope full of fifty dollar bills and an antique ring that his great grandmother had brought across from Ireland on the Titanic. He had promised to work on Esme and Edward had been absolutely sure that when it was time that they would rally to support him. Bella had been trying to prepare him for this moment, to ensure that his mental defences were strong enough to deal with the reality of being cut-off yet he had been so confident that they would come.

"Mr Cullen?" a nurse in blue scrubs appeared at the door, a spare set draped over one arm, bringing his mind back swiftly to the present and preventing any self indulgent wallowing that might have been imminent. "She's had the spinal block, we're starting in a few minutes."

Once dressed in blue scrubs he followed the nurse into the operating theatre, a bewildering place filled with bright overhead lights, busy people and the underlying smell of clean. Bella lay in the middle of it all, split in two by a surgical barrier that stopped her seeing what was going on with the business end of her body. She smiled when she saw him although she could tell from her eyes that she was terrified. In amongst the cacophony of noise made by the machines attached to Bella one suddenly starting shrilling above the others.

"Baby's in distress," said the head surgeon calmly, but in a tone of voice that made all of the other bodies in the operating theatre jump into action, "we've got to move now." Bella grabbed his hand and squeezed, her grip surprisingly tight. He squeezed back, trying to be reassuring despite being terrified himself. There were bright lights all around the room and as he looked up into one he realised that he could see an upside down image of the surgery in the shiny metal housing. He tried to look away but couldn't, transfixed as a tiny incision was made in her stomach before the surgeon quite literally ripped her open, two hands pulling the flesh, contorting it out of all recognition. He glanced back at Bella, her eyes were closed, a sheen of sweat on her face, but she was coping. In a matter of moments the surgeon dug his hands into her without ceremony pulled out a blood covered mass that he assumed was the baby.

"Airways," barked the surgeon, handing the mass off to a nurse. There was a heart stopping moment when the nurse cleared the bundle's nose and mouth then hit the baby on the back. It mewled into life, taking a first deep breath of air and voicing it's disgust at having been ripped from a warm comfortable place into the cold world. Edward let out a breath that he hadn't even realised that he was holding.

"Here," said the nurse, passing the hastily cleaned up baby to Edward whilst the surgeon prepped to put Bella back together again, "it's a girl."

"Edward," said Bella, a surprisingly firm voice from the operating table. "Let's call her Renesmee."

"I thought that we were going to call her Renee," queried Edward, softly, staring into the little girls blue eyes with a flush of love so hard and sudden that it made his legs feel wobbly. He knew that he would give his own life to protect this little bundle, "after your mother?"

"You've got a mother too," said Bella, wincing as more activity was taking place on the bottom half of her body. Edward's heart went out to her in that moment. She was lying on an operating table, waiting for somebody to staple the bottom half of her body together and she was thinking about Edward and a way to bridge the gulf that had opened between him and his mother. He knew then that he would give his life for Bella too, that he loved her deeply and more profoundly than he had ever been able to put into words.

* * *

Edward knocked on the door. He had lived along with Charlie and Bella in this very house for almost a year until they had managed to rent their own place so it felt weird to be knocking on the door like a stranger. Charlie answered, the deep lines around his eyes attesting to both his age and the worry that his daughter turning up on the doorstep had caused him. He knew why Edward was there, indeed it was Charlie who had called him, and he didn't waste time making pleasantries, just indicated with a brief nod of the head that Bella was upstairs. Edward paused at the threshold of her bedroom, not sure whether to knock or just go in. A voice from inside made up his mind for him.

"Come in Edward." He pushed open the door to find the room flooded with midday sun. He had forgotten what a light, bright space this had been. The same home-made blanket was spread across the bed and the brightly coloured rag rug, a little faded after years in the sun, was still there, a sign that little had changed since they moved out nine years ago. "I saw your car," explained Bella. She was sat at the little desk that looked out of the window. As he came into the room she pushed the screen of her laptop down and turned in the chair to face him. She was deathly pale and whilst she looked composed at the moment he could tell by the redness of her eyes that she had been crying. An immediate feeling of nausea washed across him, instigated by the knowledge that it was him that had done that to her.

"Bella," he began, his voice cracking before he could even begin speaking, a lump in his throat that wouldn't go away.

"Don't Edward," she said, wearily, her head sagging. "Just don't."

"I know you saw the note," he said, rushing his words so that she wouldn't cut him off, "but I've not been with Jessica, I promise."

"I know," she said quietly, her arms crossed across her chest. A rush of hope spread across him, a surge of expectation that everything was going to be okay. "I know," she reiterated, lifting her head for the first time to let her eyes meet his, "Flora came to see me to explain. Although, I guess that deep down I knew that you wouldn't do that."

"You're right," he gushed, "I would never..." He trailed off, suddenly aware of what the implications of his words were. He wouldn't but she would. The surge of hope was quickly replaced by a tight feeling in his stomach.

"But I would?" Her voice was harder now. "Is that what you're saying?"

"No, of course not. Besides, it was me that set up the whole Jacob thing, I can hardly blame you for what happened."

"I knew it was a set up and I fucked him anyway," said Bella, spitting the words out, the fact that she cursed so rarely making him wince. "And Riley? From the cheese shop? I fucked him too."

"Bella, don't talk like that..."

"Why not?" Her mouth set into a grim line as she looked up at him, a challenge in her eyes. "I'm a cheat and you're a pervert. What a great basis for a marriage."

"Is it because of the package? That was a mistake, the order the day before was all that you should have got."

"It doesn't matter," she said.

"Why?" he asked, slightly horrified by the thin, reedy tone of his voice as the word tumbled from his lips.

"Can't you see," she said, "our problems are way deeper than a couple of misunderstandings."

"But I love you," he said, closing the gap between them and taking her familiar body in his arms, breathing in the lavender floral scent of her favourite shampoo. For a moment her body was pliable, letting him hold her to his chest. Then her body stiffened and she gently unwound his arms from around her.

"I love you too," she whispered, her bottom lip trembling as tears started to pool in her eyes.

"Isn't that enough?" he said, answering tears starting to prickle his own eyes. She didn't answer. "Isn't love enough?" His voice was louder and more insistent, tossing the words out through gritted teeth as he sought to keep himself together long enough to sort the whole sorry mess out.

"No," she said, not trying to stop the tears as they started to leak from her eyes, tracing endless tracts down her stricken face. "We've got everything that we ever worked for." He nodded, agreeing with her. "But we're not happy."

"We are..."

"We're not happy," she said, cutting his protestation off mid sentence. "There's a gulf between us that just seems to keep growing and I don't know how the hell to stop it." Instinctively he wanted to hold her and he tried to take her in his arms again but this time she pushed him away with a strength that made it clear that there was no room for manoeuvre. "Don't Edward." He took a step back, not quite sure who this stranger in front of him was, the beautiful woman with tears running down her face in mournful tracts+. "This isn't something that a hug, or a tennis bracelet or some ridiculous grand gesture can resolve." He took another step back, not quite sure how to deal with the enormity of what she was saying.

"What..." Again, she didn't let him finish, effectively controlling the situation.

"I'm going to stay here with Charlie for a couple of weeks and think about things."

"What about Renesmee?"

"She's used to you working late or away," said Bella. There was no inflection to her voice yet he could still feel the accusation within it. "If I'm still here when she finishes camp she won't question it."

"Is this the end?" he asked.

"I don't know, Edward, I really don't know."

"Please don't say that Bella," he pleaded, a lump forming in his own throat. "I forgive you. You know that I would forgive you anything."

"I know," she whispered, "but I just don't know whether I can forgive myself."


	17. Chapter 17

The short window of summer in the Northwest was slipping through her fingers as surely as sand. Bella had been at Charlie's for a week, entertaining a schedule that was no more onerous than sleeping late, snoozing the afternoons away under an umbrella in the small back yard then drinking beer as they watched football or re-runs of sitcoms that Bella had watched alongside him first time round. The adult in her thought that she should be doing something but the self-indulgent child was enjoying having Charlie take care of her, savouring the companionable silence as they ate dinner and discussing nothing more complex than the Seahawks latest results.

"Not working today?" asked Bella. She was still in her pyjamas although the midday sun was high in the sky. Charlie was dressed in jeans and a blue checked flannel shirt instead of the police uniform that she had grown accustomed to seeing him in. He wore a dark coloured vest with all sorts of little pockets and attachments on top.

"No," he replied, with a smile, "Billy's taking me out fishing in his new boat."

"Billy?" She wrinkled her brow, racking her brain to a time where she had heard that name before. It was from when she was young, when life was good and Renee was well, looking after Bella for the day while Charlie went off fishing. "Now that's a blast from the past."

"It sure is," said Charlie, rifling through the kitchen drawers absent-mindedly, "we did drift apart when you mother was ill but we've been in touch again these last couple of years. He's rekindled my interest in fishing." He found what he was looking for, a small tin that he slipped into one of the tiny pockets on the waistcoat before looking up at her with hopeful eyes. "You should come."

"Nah, I'll just hang around here, thanks." She opened the kitchen cupboard and pulled out a box of Lucky Charms, placing it on the worktop.

"You should come," said Charlie for a second time, slightly more insistent. She fished in a separate cupboard and pulled out a cereal bowl, surprised when she turned back round to face him to find him looking at her with a sheepish grin. "Billy's son is back from Seattle for the weekend, he's just a little bit younger than you."

"Billy's son?" She stared at Charlie through narrowed eyes, the initial spark of recognition starting to morph into something more concrete. "What's Billy's surname again?"

"Black," said Charlie, "his son is Jacob." He was obviously trying to keep his voice innocent but he was a terrible liar and couldn't look her in the eye at all. "I think that you might have met him already."

"We have," replied Bella carefully, "he was doing some renovations on a cabin for Edward."

"I'm sorry," confessed Charlie, in a rush, the subterfuge clearly too much, "it seems that Jacob heard Billy making plans with me and decided that it would be nice to invite you along too, given that you don't have much to do here."

"How thoughtful," said Bella, pouring the milk into the cereal and watching the swirling of the gaudy pieces as if it was a vortex, an escape from this decision into something far simpler.

"It was just an idea," said Charlie, spreading his palms wide in defence, "I just wanted to get you out of the house." She dipper her spoon into the bowl, stopping the hypnotic swirling with one decisive movement and loaded the spoon with cereal, not bothering to close her mouth as she crunched on the sugary contents. Charlie didn't seem to know what had happened with Jacob, he was just embarrassed at being part of a thinly concealed plan to get her to do something other than moping around. She hadn't forgiven Jacob for telling her that the camera was off on the night where everything came to a head but she hadn't forgotten him either. It was all so confusing.

"Maybe next time," she said, concentrating on the cereal and deciding that deferring any decision was the best possible course of action.

"Okay," said Charlie, disappointed but willing to accept her decision at face value.

* * *

Knock knock. Bella was sitting under a blanket on the couch, watching an old black and white movie. She wasn't expecting anyone so she just ignored the sound and turned her attention back to the television.

Knock knock. She looked down at her flannel pyjamas and ran a hand over her unwashed hair which was scraped back into a ponytail. There was no way that she could go to the door like that so she hunkered down lower under the blanket to wait it out.

Tap, tap, tap. A tiny little noise came from the window behind her and she dared raise her head to see what was making it. Alice's face appeared at the window, smiling and waving. She must be standing on her tip-toes in one of Charlie's flower beds to be able to see in like that. Great, thought Bella, that's all I need. She didn't want to see anybody right now let alone Edward's sister. Alice was annoyingly positive at the best of times. Bella dutifully stood up, pretending that she had only just noticed the figure at the window. She brushed crumbs from her lap and indicated to the waving figure that she would open the front door.

"Hi Bella, how lovely to see you!" Alice launched herself into the house before Bella could get the chance to block her way or fob her off, ignoring Bella's unwashed state to give her a brief but genuine hug before leading the way into the living room without being asked. "Oh, a duvet day," she cried, as she saw the blanket and the paused movie, "how lovely!" Bella knew that her tactful sister in law was absolving her of the need to explain herself and in that moment she loved Alice for it, a little memory of fondness breaking through the dull painful fug of depression.

"Please, sit down," said Bella, indicating the worn armchair that Charlie usually sat in. Bella couldn't help but stare at Alice's massive bump as she lowered herself carefully into the low chair.

"Two more weeks," said Alice with a rueful smile, noticing Bella staring at her bump, "that's all that anybody asks me nowadays."

"You look well," said Bella and she meant it.

"That's why I'm here actually."

"It is?" Bella sat up a little bit higher in her chair, suddenly scared that Alice would go into labour right there in front of her. She relaxed slightly after a few seconds of close observation suggested that nothing was awry with her sister in law.

"It's my baby shower next week," continued Alice, "I really want you to be there."

"But..."

"No buts," said Alice, sternly. "I know that there's something going on with you and Edward just now. I don't know what it is but he won't talk about it and I'm pretty sure based on your previous record that you won't talk about it either." Bella snorted, not quite believing given the current level of interest in her personal life that Alice wasn't going to press her for any juicy details. "Nevertheless, you're both going to be godparents to this little thing when it arrives," she indicated her bump, "so I'd really like it if you could be there."

"You want me to be godmother?" Bella's voice was increduous, even to her own ears.

"Of course," said Alice, her face creasing into a sweet little confused look, "who else is there?"

"Anybody else?" suggested Bella. It came out as a joke but in truth Bella couldn't think of herself a a moral compass for any young life.

"Don't be silly," Alice said, gaily but with a hint of underlying menace, "you're the godmother and that's the end of it." Bella opened her mouth to protest but caught the look that Alice was giving her and quickly closed her mouth. It was no surprise that when Alice wanted something Alice got it. They made small talk for a while before Alice made her excuses and left, promising to e-mail Bella the details of the party. As soon as Alice was safely in the car Bella's fake goodbye smile fell, she dropped her waving hand and closed the door, turning the key but leaving it in the lock and returning to her warm comfortable place on the sofa.

* * *

Knock knock. Bella had barely settled down under the blanket when the door sounded again. Sighing, she dragged herself to her feet again and went to the door, half expecting to see Alice again.

"Hi," it was Jacob, large as life and twice as handsome, standing on the doorstep in a tight black T-shirt and faded jeans. His huge red Ford was parked on the street behind him, a splash of unapologetic colour in the quiet suburb. She cursed herself for not peeping out of the window first to check who it was. He was wearing aviator style sunglasses with mirrored lenses but the dazzle of his smile was far more arresting than the designer gear. "Oh, sorry," he said, taking the sunglasses off and clasping them in his hands with a self deprecating smile, "I forgot I was wearing these in the car."

"What are you doing here?" She didn't invite him in, instead she crossed her arms and leaned against one side of the door. She longed to sort her hair or zip up her sweater to hide the milk stains and biscuit crumbs underneath but part of her felt that it was important not to show that she cared, to hide her underlying vulnerability.

"Charlie thought you might want some company." He smiled but it was nervous and didn't reach his eyes. Her manner thawed just a little. Having cast him in her head as the cartoon villain it was hard to have him right there in front of her looking nervous as hell, that mix of masculine strength and adorable vulnerability that had made her desire him so much in the first place.

"Charlie thought wrong," she replied, her voice remarkably steady, "and I will personally kick his ass later for suggesting that."

"I'm sorry," he grimaced, "if there's any ass kicking it should be mine. When I put two and two together and figured out who Charlie Swan was I kind of put the idea in his head. Him and my Dad have had a couple of beers already so it wasn't too hard to get him to suggest it."

"Well," she said, in what she hoped was a polite manner, "I'm sorry that you've had a wasted journey." She took a step backward into the house, readying herself to close the door.

"Wait!" he shouted. She paused a second, stuck in the no-man's land of the threshold. The outdoors and danger clad in bottom hugging jeans was in front of her, the warm womb like safety of the living room and her movie marathon behind. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"We fuck." She spat the words out and he winced as if she had struck him.

"Oh god, Bella," he said quietly, running his hands through his hair. He took a deep breath and gathered himself, visibly straightening his back in the face of her outburst. "It won't be anything like that, you have my word." She didn't reply and he took that as encouragement, continuing quickly before she could make any objection. "Charlie and my dad will be back at his house soon with some fish. We'll fire up the barbecue, eat some fish and drink some beer. A few friends might come too. That's it. Fully chaperoned at all times, I'll stay sober and drive you and Charlie home. Just friends, just getting you out of the house."

"Chaperoned?" She raised her eyebrow, the first hint of a smile spreading threatening to break out from the corners of her mouth despite her resolve to stay icy cool. "How quaint!"

"So," he said, "does that mean that you're going to come along?"

"I'm not sure..."

"Come on," he said, with a cocky tilt of his head, "you've gone from straight up no to maybe in the space of two minutes. Why don't we just cut out the next five minutes of haggling and you say yes now?"

"Jaob!" She couldn't help but smile, his arrogance had a fun, teasing air to it and she found herself drawn to him again, reasoning that with Charlie and Billy around that there would be no chance of funny business. "Go on then."

"Great," he said, grinning. "Um," his face crinkled, his tone a little uncertain, "did you want a few minutes to get changed?" She looked down at her T-shirt, the stains and crumbs that she had defiantly held up as a shield only a few moments ago suddenly something that they could both laugh at.

"I guess so," she said, smiling sheepishly at him. Her mirth was cut short as she wondered whether she should invite him in.

"I'll wait in the truck," he said, intuitively sparing her the decision. "I've got a few calls to make."

* * *

Bella stroking his head when he was ill. Bella wrapping her body around his like a spoon. Bella feeding Renesmee from a creamy white breast. Bella in a plain white T-shirt laughing at his jokes...

"Edward?"

"Sorry," he frowned, "what was that?" His team sat around the boardroom table and the air was thick, he was clearly expected to answer some sort of question.

"The factory," said Kevin, patiently, "the contractor has filed for bankruptcy."

"That's outrageous," said Edward, the sudden quiet steel in his voice making everybody around the table sit up and take notice. "We've only just sent them an extra quarter of a million. I'll assume that there's no chance of getting that cash back."

"That's what I was trying to say," said Kevin, plaintively, "they haven't even started the asbestos removal so whilst we can engage the contractor with the second cheapest tender we'll need to find the money for the asbestos removal again as well as the extra money for the main contract."

"The bank accounts have already been depleted from the last payment," said Edward, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "I'll need to try and borrow some from the Bank."

"Edward," replied Kevin quietly, "the company is mortgaged to the hilt, there's no more assets to leverage against."

"Don't worry," said Edward to his team, with a cool smile that did not betray the lurching in his stomach, "I'll get the money."


	18. Chapter 18

Knock knock. There was no response and no sound of movement inside. KNOCK KNOCK. His second knock was loud enough to make a woman across the street raise her head from where she was digging in her flowerbed and look at him curiously. Edward smiled politely at her and after observing him for a few moments she turned her attention back to her flowers, having decided that the well dressed man with the sleek Jaguar parked behind him was not trying to break in. Edward made his way down the three steps to the front door and regarded the house from afar, searching the windows for evidence of occupation and finding none. He took his mobile phone out of his pocket and rang Bella's number.

"Goddammit!" The sound of her ringtone, the specific one that she used for Edward, chimed from inside the house. "Where are you?" he said,to nobody in particular, hanging up before the voicemail clicked in. "Where the hell are you?"

Given the state he had left Bella in the last time they met he fully expected to find her here, moping around in pyjamas feeling sorry for herself. He didn't want to give voice to the small thought gnarling away in his stomach like indigestion that suggested that he wanted to find her like that, wanted to find her hurt and injured so that he could sweep in and apply the band aid of his love and make it all better again.

Edward got back into the car and sat for a moment, watching the woman dig little holes and drop plants in before covering them over, smoothing down the soil and watering them with a large green can. It was a soothing, familiar action which reminded him of Bella pottering around a garden bathed in golden sunlight and Renesmee playing happily in the sand pit nearby.

* * *

"Edward, you're home!" The kitchen diner had french doors leading straight into the garden and Bella wandered in, Renesmee trailing behind. She had her hair tied back from her face with a bandana and there was a smudge of mud of one cheek. Both of them were barefoot and Edward noticed that Bella had painted Renesmee's toenails the same sweet pink as her own. "I would have started cooking if I had known you were back!" She bent to kiss him and he turned his cheek slightly, letting her kiss it in greeting before turning his attention back to a sheaf of papers that he had spread out on the table.

"Don't worry about food," he said, "I'm leaving in half an hour to have dinner with a supplier."

"Oh," she looked hurt, stood slightly lost on the tiled floor, her arms hanging uncertainly by her side.

"I told you," he said quickly, rushing to justify himself, "I told you last week that I would be out tonight."

"Oh no," she said, with a smile that he knew was fake but ignored, "I must have forgotten, don't worry about it." Edward felt rather than saw her still lingering.

"What?"

"What do you mean, what?"

"You're lurking," he said, putting the papers down heavily, "why are you lurking?"

"I thought that we could talk about remodelling the guest rooms."

"Another time, maybe."

"But I thought..."

"You thought what?"

"Nothing," she said, "it doesn't matter."

"Look honey," he said, slightly kinder, "we've finally managed to get the company to a space where you can take a step back and enjoy spending time with Renesmee. If you want to remodel the guest rooms, just go ahead and do it." He smiled, pleased that he had found the right words. "If you want a new car or a posh handbag just buy it. I want you to enjoy the little luxuries that Cullen Industries has given us the opportunity to enjoy and leave the stress of running the business to me." He got to his feet, picked up the papers and kissed her forehead absent mindedly before leaving the room.

* * *

Charlie was snoring in the back seat of the double cab truck. Jacob turned his head towards Bella and pulled a face.

"Are we gonna have to listen to that all the way home?"

"Afraid so," replied Bella, laughing. "When he's had a few drinks he snores loud enough to rattle the walls."

"Well, at least he had a good time," said Jacob, pushing the gearknob to drive and switching the lights on to illuminate the summer twilight.

"He seemed to," agreed Bella, clicking her seatbelt into place, "was it just me or was your Auntie Sue flirting with him?"

"Oh," said Jacob, in a sarcastic voice, "you noticed too?" They both snickered. "Hell, I think Charlie was the only one who didn't notice."

"Yeah," said Bella, "the Swan family aren't really known for their perception."

"So I gather," he said pointedly, before turning his attention to the road and pulling away from the road outside Billy's house. The front of the house was dark but there were lights on at the back and when Bella wound down the window the soothing hubbub of happy voices permeated the air along with the scent of chargrilled fish and beer.

"Did you have a good time?" asked Jacob, slightly cautiously, masking how much the question meant to him by keeping his eyes on the road ahead.

"I did." She said.

"Really?" He glanced at her, seeking reassurance and she smiled and nodded. He smiled back at her, wide and open, the movement triggering a flood of warmth within her.

It was true, she had enjoyed the afternoon. First off, the look on Charlie's face when she arrived flanked by Jacob would have been enough to make the trip worthwhile. When Billy greeted Jacob Charlie looked up from where he was gutting fish over a little red bucket with an expression of hope on his face that made her stomach tight. When he saw Bella it morphed into genuine happiness mingled with relief. When the normally reserved man rushed to his feet and enveloped her in a bear hug she suddenly realised how worried he had been about her this past week.

Paul and Leah arrived with their two little ones, Ben and Sophia, in tow and while Billy manned the barbecue they set out an impromptu baseball game in the wide grassy backyard. Paul and Jacob were team captains and they all roared in laughter as Jacob tucked the happily screaming Ben under one arm and ran barefoot around the bases to score a home run and bring the game to a draw before dinner. Sue arrived with accompaniments and an excited Seth and soon they were all sitting in mis-matched garden chairs eating hot fresh barbecued fish and all the trimmings.

After eating the guys started throwing a football around while Bella stayed at the table, chatting with Sue and Leah. Sophia, a bossy little eight year old, made Bella promise to bring Renesmee along next time. Leah told funny anecdotes about Jacob and the things that he had got up to as a teenager and Sue pressed her for information about Charlie, prompting some serious eye-rolling from Leah who pretended to be embarrassed by her mother's lack of subtlety. As Sue passed Bella another beer, the bottle heavy with condensation in the warm, summer air, she watched the impromptu game through half closed eyes, a feeling of contentment spreading over her like a blanket. Jacob loped around the wide backyard easily, throwing and catching the ball, coaching Ben, racing Seth and occasionally even letting him win. Being here made life seem so simple.

"Earth to Bella," Jacob interrupted her thoughts, bringing her back to the present and the cab of the truck.

"Sorry," she said, pulling herself upright in the seat to illustrate that he had her full attention again, "I was miles away. You were saying?"

"I was just asking how you are," he said, in a soft voice.

"Fine." Bella sneaked a glance at Charlie, still fast asleep in the back, his head lolling back against the headrest and his mouth wide open. Jacob didn't say anything, letting the silence spread out until she felt she had to fill it. "Not fine. I'm sad and hurt and confused. I don't know what to do with myself."

"Bella," he sighed, a pain in his voice that echoed her own. "I wish that I could do something."

"There's nothing..."

"There is," he said, urgently, "I could be your friend."

"Not after everything..." she began.

"Yes," he interrupted, "especially after everything." She bit her lip and stared out of the window, not quite sure how to respond to him. "I know what happened," he said. "I'm pretty sure that there's nobody else in the world right now who could understand the situation like somebody that was there, somebody like me."

"But you lied, Jacob," she said, the words that she had been repressing all day on account of not wanting to cause a scene finally spilling out. "You lied that day, about the camera."

"How do you know?" His voice was flat, displaying no emotion.

"I heard you," a single tear escaped from her eye and she blinked it away, "I heard you that night, boasting to Edward about it."

"Did you." It wasn't a question, it was a guarded statement.

"Yes, and you really hurt me."

"I'm so, so sorry," he said, gripping the steering wheel like some sort of life buoy. "You just admitted that night in the car that you liked me," he risked a glance at her, "you said that you really liked me, and I didn't want to ruin the moment."

"We could have gone to the RV."

"Maybe," he conceded, with a flippant little shrug of the shoulders, "but you underestimate my feelings for you." She blinked again, bringing his face into focus in the half light of the cab, trying to gauge the sincerity of what he was saying. "I hated Edward. I wanted to stick it to him. I wanted to rub his nose in it and show him how stupid he was for pushing somebody like you away." His voice hardened. "I wanted to make him hurt the way that I knew I was going to hurt when I had to leave you."

The cab fell into silence, a totality punctuated only by Charlie's regular heavy breathing. What could she say to that? What could she say to a man who had just admitted to being insanely jealous over her.

"So what now?" she asked, gently. Jacob took his eyes from his eyes from the road again, wary at her sudden change of tone.

"There's a what?" he said, tentatively.

"I think so," she replied, voicing something to him that she had barely acknowledged herself.

"We started off backwards," he said, his voice only a little above a whisper, "I want to do things right, take you out on a date..."

"Hold your horses," she laughed, "we're nearly back in letter jacket territory here."

"So," he said, with a cock of the head that indicated that his arrogant streak had returned, "I'm an old fashioned kind of guy. Nothing wrong with that."

"Nothing at all," agreed Bella, "in fact, the way my life is messed up just now I could do with things being really, really old-fashioned." She sneaked a glance at him, suddenly worried that her request to take things slow would be too big an ask for a red blooded male. Yet he was still smiling, a grin that stretched from ear to ear.

"Old-fashioned is fine by me." They lapsed into silence for a few miles and this time it was a companiable one. Jacob pulled the truck up in front of the house and killed the engine. He stretched his arm across the gulf between them and grasped her hand in his. It was hot and callused and she smiled at everything that it represented. They made plans to go out midweek in hushed tones before opening the doors, laughing out loud as Bella slammed the passenger door and jolted Charlie awake.

"Coffee?" said Charlie, indicating that he was making some for himself. Bella's initial reaction was to say no and retreat to her bedroom yet Charlie's eyes expressed a longing to continue their evening.

"Go on then," she said, pulling out a chair at the little red and white covered table. Charlie pottered around, still slightly inebriated, making a pot of coffee. He added cream and sugar to the mugs and pulled up a chair at the table to sit with her.

"It was really nice to see you having fun tonight," said Charlie quietly. He dared to look up from stirring the hot liquid and finding her smiling, straightened himself up and smiled back at her.

"I had a good time," she said. "You were right to try and get me out of the house."

"Well, I'm glad that Jacob managed to get you to change your mind," he took sip of coffee and continued smiling, "he's a good looking young man."

"Dad!" squeaked Bella.

"Sorry," he said, spreading his arms in front of him defensively, "just stating a fact." He took another long sip of coffee, this time never taking his eyes from her. "I caught him sneaking looks at you a few times."

"Dad!"

"Well, it's the truth!" His smile slowly faded. "I'm sorry, I know things are difficult with Edward right now. You've not let me know what's going on and honestly, I'm scared to ask. But, you can't blame a father for holding onto some stupid fantasy that his little girl and grand-daughter are and close by and accessible." His dark eyes, so like her own, had longing written all over them. "It was really nice tonight and I couldn't help myself imagining what it would have been like with Renesmee there too, playing with the other kids. Just about perfect, I think." He paused for a moment. "I like Edward," he said, "I really do, but I can't help thinking that life with somebody like Jacob would be easier for you." A pang of guilt, needle sharp, twisted in her guts. The move to Seattle had been the dream but now that she thought about it, when was the last time that she had come back to Greenburgh for more than a flying visit? When had she grown so far apart from Charlie, the only real family that she had left?

Ring, ring. Her mobile phone rang upstairs, Edward's familiar tone interrupting their moment. Charlie jerked, clearly expecting her answer it.

"Come on," she said, putting a hand on his and bringing his gaze back to her, "it's still early, shall we put a movie on?"

He smiled in response, his genuine happiness a balm to her own sadness.


	19. Chapter 19

_Lance Dollar._ The sign on the heavy wooden door was brass and highly polished. When the voice from within shouted for Edward to come in he stopped for a moment, checking his reflection for a final time in the surface, and took a deep breath, pulling himself up to his full height before stepping over the threshold.

"Edward," said Lance, extending a broad hand across a desk that held only an open laptop and a neat pile of paper, nothing even a fraction out of line. Lance's suit, shirt and tie were all striped, the vertical lines ruined only by the breadth of his gut. The weight gain must have been recent because the buttons on his shirt were straining and when he sat back down in his office chair he pulled the shirt down to try to hide it.

"Coffee?" asked Lance.

"Black please," replied Edward, sitting down in the leather chair on the opposite side of the desk. Lance ordered drinks over the intercom from a faceless assistant. As well as being on the door Lance's name was also on a brass sign on his desk. Once, Bella had asked their bank manager whether he had been destined to work in finance on account of his name. They had found it hilarious but the tightly wound man had most definitely not. He smiled again now at the thought of Bella's off the cuff comment which had somehow united them against the Bank and unsettled Lance. He wished, not for the first time, that he had been able to get hold of her before this meeting.

"Is something amusing?" asked Lance.

"No, no," said Edward, hurriedly, smoothing down the lapels of his suit jacket nervously, "just remembering something that happened." Lance glared at him. "I mean, something outside of here." Lance interrupted his glaring only to open the top drawer of the dark wood desk, pulling out a newspaper and throwing it onto the desk in front of Edward. His heart sank. It was this mornings Greenburgh Examiner. The contractor filing for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy was big news and Jessica had rung him at 7AM to warn him that Mike Newton's editorial yet again cast doubt as to whether Cullen Industries could ever complete the project given that it had been beset by difficulties.

"I suppose," began Lance, in the slightly smug voice of a man who enjoyed the prospect of somebody begging for assistance, "that this is why you're here."

"It is," said Edward, not wishing to prolong the conversation longer than necessary. "I need to raise some additional funds to get the project back on track."

"Pretty major cost over-run," said Lance, leaning back in his chair, hands clasped in front of him on the desk.

"It's not a cost over-run," explained Edward, calmly, "nobody could have foreseen the contractor taking our money then filing for bankruptcy."

"How much?" said Lance, glossing over Edward's comment.

"Three quarters of a million," said Edward. His palms were clammy and he made himself hold onto the arms of the chair rather than betray his mood by fidgeting.

"Seven hundred and fifty thousand?" Lance wrote the number on a new sheet of yellow legal paper, Edward could see the question mark that he added beside it.

"Yes, Lance," he said, fighting the urge to snap at the other man's stupid question, "I need seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars and I need it quickly."

"You can't," said Lance, dropping his pen and crossing his palms across his gut with finality, as if simply writing the word on paper and looking at it was enough to make a decision on the company's credit worthiness. "All of the assets in the company are mortgaged up to the hilt. I can't lend you another penny at the present time." Edward stared at Lance, unblinking, willing him to change his mind. "Unless..."

"Yes?" Edward leaned forward, desperate for a life line.

"The house." Lance looked at Edward expectantly, continuing when Edward didn't respond. "Your house is worth over a million, isn't it?" Edward nodded. "I can lend you the money against the house."

"Is there no other way?"

"Quite frankly, no." Edward felt as if the man had punched him in the gut.

"I could go to another bank." Edward said it as a statement but they both knew, even as the words passed his lips that he couldn't. Their first business, Volturi Widgets, had failed spectacularly. Lance had been the only Banker willing to lend money to them when they created Cullen Industries as a phoenix company. They stuck with him not only because he had supported them at the beginning but because Cullen Industries hadn't yet been trading at full potential long enough for people to forget the chaos wrought by Volturi. There was quite literally no other Bank that he could go to.

"I'll speak to Bella," said Edward, flatly.

"Fine," said Lance, "do you want me to draw up the paperwork and courier it over?" Edward nodded. They made small talk for a few minutes before Edward made his excuses and left, the meeting over before the faceless assistant could even bring the offered coffee.

He closed the door carefully behind him as he left, noticing as he looked into the shiny name panel that the deep gouges of the engraved name distorted his face beyond all recognition.

* * *

"Morning Bella," said Charlie, popping an absent-minded kiss onto the top her head as he walked past where she was sitting at the kitchen table to pour himself a cup of coffee. It was Monday morning, his day off and at 9AM he was still in sweatpants and a stained old T-shirt, two days worth of dark and grey stubble visible on his chin.

"Morning Dad," she replied. "Sleep well?"

"I did," he said, sitting down at the table with his black coffee and absent-mindedly rubbing his chin, making the stubble rasp audibly under his touch. "And you?"

"Actually," she admitted, "last night was the best night's sleep that I have had for a while."

"That's what good food and beer will do to you," he replied with a slight smile. They sat in comfortable silence for a few moments, Charlie sipping his coffee and Bella ploughing through her Lucky Charms, the spoon scraping rhythmically on the bottom of the bowl.

"I'm sorry for what I said about Edward last night," began Charlie, quietly, clasping his mug slightly nervously between two hands.

"What do you mean?" Bella set the spoon down, cereal forgotten.

"You know," said Charlie, "about life being easier if you were with someone like Jacob." Bella watched him silently. "I was just being selfish and I'm really, really sorry. I mean, life wasn't easy with Renee. She was ill for a lot of years and when I lost my job at the plant things got pretty rough." Tears prickled Bella's eyes, she remembered those days well, canned spaghetti for their evening meal, debt collectors at the door, walking on eggshells because she was never sure whether it was a good day or a bad day for Renee. "But Bella, I wouldn't change a thing about those years. Renee was the love of my life and every day was a gift. Heaven knows, there were bad days. There were some days that were so bad that I didn't know if I could cope." Tears started to well in Bella's eyes. The day where the bailiffs came to take the television, Renee crying downstairs and Charlie trying to soothe her, the day where she had cut herself for the first time. The rivulets of blood, the soothing pain the only element of control she had in a world that was crashing down around her, where hating her Mother for being ill became a cycle of blame and guilt that she couldn't express to anybody in the whole world. "What I'm trying to say," said Charlie, his tight lopsided smile betraying the fact that he was intensely uncomfortable with the conversation, "is that the best things in life aren't necessarily the easy things. Marriage takes hard work and commitment. Edward's been a good husband to you and a good father to Renesmee. I would hate to see you throw things away just when the going gets hard."

"Hard?" said Bella, incredulous, her voice rising a little, "our relationship has been hard from the beginning. We've had to fight for our marriage, our family and our business. Nothing has ever been easy, nothing at all."

"Then I guess you both have to ask yourselves," said Charlie, "why it is when you've got everything that you ever worked for, the house, the cars, that fancy private school for Renesmee, that things are starting to fall apart?."

* * *

Edward arrived first, tipping the server discreetly to ensure a quiet booth in the corner. He sat down and ordered a pot of coffee, the special Colombian Roast blend, and two slices of the caramel shortbread. The coffee arrived before she did and he spent way too long looking at it, trying to decide whether it would be better to wait for her to pour for both of them or to pour a drink for himself so that he could be casually drinking it and perusing the newspaper when she arrived.

"Hi Edward," the decision was made for him as Bella appeared, silent in approach on account of her Converse sneakers. She slipped into the booth opposite him, shrugging off her cardigan and laying it on the seat beside her, exposing her bare arms and decollatage in a plain tank top. Bella never tanned and it amazed him that now, in the late summer, that her skin was luminous and creamy white, her eyes as dark as the coffee and much richer. Her hair was tied up in a messy bun, a far cry from the smooth blow dries and structured up-do's that he had become accustomed to seeing her in. "What are you looking at?" she asked, automatically pouring out the coffee for both of them, a comforting movement that reminded of Sunday mornings at home.

"You," he said honestly, "you look beautiful." To his immense surprise and pleasure a visible flush spread over her cheeks. The tight, twisted knot that he had been carrying around inside started to loosen just a little. Surely, if a few words from him still had a visible effect on her then there was hope? She lowered her gaze, busying herself with adding cream and sugar to her own drink, studiously avoiding his gaze. Yet the flush was spreading to her chest. He wasn't sure if it was his fanciful brain or a fact but he was sure that he could see the blood of her heightened pulse fluttering in the little hollow at the base of her neck, the one that he sometimes used to rest his thumb in when he was kissing her, enjoying the thrum of her body under his fingers.

"So," said Bella, "you wanted to talk to me urgently." The matter at hand was serious and he filled her in as quickly as he could. Like always she didn't need to hear anything twice, grasping the situation and the consequences immediately.

"Fine," said Bella without hesitation, "I'll sign for the Bank to take the house as security."

"But Bella," he said, softly, willing her to understand, "it's everything that we worked for. If any more problems arise then we could lose it."

"Do you have doubts about doing it?" she said, narrowing her eyes and regarding him closely.

"Of course I do," he said, "what would people think if we lost our house?."

"Who cares," she said, picking up her slice of cake and taking an unladylike bite, "I don't care about what people think." She chewed the cake carefully, swallowing her mouthful then putting the cake down and taking a sip of coffee. "In fact, I don't even care about that house."

"Of course you do," said Edward, dropping his own coffee mug onto the table top with an audible clatter that made a couple in the booth opposite cast inquiring glances his way. "You love that house. It's our dream."

"No," she said quietly, in a firm but steely way that made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. "You love that house, it's your dream."

"But..."

"No buts, Edward," she interrupted, impatiently, "you've spent half of your life consumed with what your parents may or may not think and whether you're enough of a success to show them that they were wrong about us. I've gone along with it all of these years but in truth, I don't give a damn about any of it, especially not the house." He looked at her, his mouth dropping gently open. "I mean, staff?" she continued, a sneer on her face, "I grew up with nothing and now even though I don't work I've still got a full-time housekeeper to look after us. It's obscene."

"I..." Edward struggled to find the words to make an adequate response. He had always been able to read Bella so well, so much so that she joked that he must be part psychic. But this was new and completely out of the blue. The information was almost too much for him to handle. "I didn't know you felt like that."

"Neither did I," she admitted, "until a couple of days ago." She met his eyes again and her gaze was heartbreaking and melancholy, almost as if the particles of air that it touched were morphed into something heavier and more charged than ordinary air. That gaze reverberated deep in his soul with the unpleasantness of nails on a blackboard. "I guess this stuff that has happened between us has made me re-evaluate what's important in life."

"We're important," he said impulsively, reaching his hands over the table and grabbing her hand. His heart soared a little as she didn't pull away. "You and Renesmee are my world Bella. I desperately want to get over this. I want you back for good."

"But would you give up the house and the cars and the other trappings of success?" She caught him off guard, for the second time in as many minutes. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

"Well, your pause says everything that I need to know." She pulled her hand away from his gently.

"Bella, don't misunderstand my pause," said Edward, his voice urgent, "I'm not thinking about the cars or any of our possessions. It's just that what we're doing at Greenburgh is big. It's a project that has the ability to affect hundreds of lives in a positive way. I'd sell the business tomorrow and move into a cave if I thought that I could have you back but I've committed to the Greenburgh plant and there's no way that I can back out now."

"I know," said Bella, Edward finally rewarded with a smile. "That project is amazing and I want it to work just as much as you."

"Then come back to Cullen Industries," he said, impulsively. "You're harder than me, it will be good to have you back on board helping drive this project through."

"Hard?" She smiled again, it seemed closer to the surface and easier to break through this time. "I'm not hard."

"Oh yes you are," he teased, "in fact, since you left Kevin's gradually started eating home-made curries in the office again. I need you to tell him to keep it to the staff kitchen." She laughed, a sweet, satisfying sound.

"Edward, you are just too nice," she said, "why don't you just tell him?"

"I don't have the heart," he replied, running his hands through his hair in a self deprecating way, "he's such a nice guy."

"It does sound like you need me..."

"Please Bella," he said, "this is the biggest thing that you and I have ever been involved in. I need you there, by my side, helping me take the difficult decisions."

"Okay" she said, nodding decisively, "I'll come back."

"Will you move back home too?" he asked, tentatively, trying not to let his hopes start to build.

"I will," she replied, "but," the tiny green shoot of hope started to feel a little premature, ready to wither with that one word, "I'll stay in the spare room for now."

"Oh, OK," his face fell and she must have seen it.

"Edward," she said, softly, reaching her hand across the table to grab his, "I'm not angry with you any more."

"You're not?" His face crinkled, struggling to understand her meaning, "then why can't we...?"

"I'm still angry with myself," she said.

"You're not...?"

"No," she said, in a rush that belied how difficult she found the conversation, "I'm not self-harming. The coping strategies the therapist taught me are working. I just can't help but feeling that if we try to pick up where we left off that we won't have fixed what was wrong with us."

"There was nothing wrong..." he began.

"It's that kind of bury your head in the sand attitude that's got us where we are now," she replied. "For the moment we need to look outward, to get the Greenburgh plant moving. But then we need to look inward, we need to look at us and decide if there is something there worth fixing." He nodded, agreeing with her sentiment. They lapsed into silence for a few moments, the soothing hubbub of the coffee shop starting to come back into focus after their intense conversation. Edward's green shoot of hope had taken root. He was confident that with her back in his life every day that he could win her round.

"Edward?" said Bella, "I've got something to confess."

"You do?" he replied. His heart lurched.

"I saw Jacob at the weekend."

"That little..." he stamped the tabletop with his fist, so hard that coffee slopped over the top of his mug and onto the tabletop. He grabbed a handful of napkins and lifted the cup, swirling the coffee up from underneath it in movement as elegant and practised as a croupier dealing a hand. "We had a gentleman's agreement."

"A what?"

"A gentleman's agreement," he repeated. He rubbed the bridge of his nose, a movement that Bella used to say was a tell for mounting stress. "He agreed to stay away from you so that we could try to patch things up."

"Oh," she replied, furrowing her brow slightly in a way that he usually found adorable but that today brought further trepidation. "It turns out Charlie knows Jacob's father from way back. It was quite a coincidence really." She looked up from her coffee mug to him, regarding him through long dark lashes. "I had agreed to go out with him mid-week but I think that it would be best that I cancel."

Edward was in turmoil. The way that she defended him, brushed off their meeting as coincidence worried him more than Jacob's double cross. He had put this train into motion and now he seemed powerless to stop it. When he got Bella back he would only be satisfied if he had her mind, body and soul. If he put his foot down and stamped out this thing with Jacob now then there might always be a part of her that wondered what could have been, a part that would stay restless. He took a deep breath, taking time to compose the perfect response.

"No," he said, "you should still go out with him."

"What?" She didn't try to conceal her surprise from him. "I don't understand why you would say that?"

"I put you in an impossible situation and it backfired. I thought that at the cabin you could cheat with my permission and that you would get whatever was making you restless out of your system and come back to me but I was so, so wrong." He paused, looking at her until she returned her gaze, meeting her eyes with an urgency that he hoped she felt. "When I get you back it has to be because you want to come back to me. I need you to learn for yourself that somebody like Jacob could never love you the way that I do. I need you to know that although I've made some incredibly stupid mistakes that I've loved you from the moment we met and I will continue to love you until the day that we die. I will do whatever it takes to make things right between us." He signed, running his hands through his hair. His voice lowered an octave, willing her to lean in closer to hear what he had to say. "Jacob's's not right for you, but I need you to find that out for yourself, rather than because I've warned him off." Bella stared at him. A rapid succession of emotions passed across her face, disbelief, understanding, a flash of fear. "Bella, I need you with me completely, not half of you or even three quarters. It's all or nothing." With a trembling hand he pulled out his wallet, threw a twenty on the table and stood up. "See you tomorrow at the office?" She nodded slowly, almost disorientated and he could feel her gaze boring into his back as he left, striding out the door with more confidence than he felt.

Out in the fresh air he paused, taking in great lungfuls of air to clear his head. He wasn't a gambler but if this was a game of poker he was all in. His business, his home and most importantly, his wife had been staked. He closed his eyes and looked up to the sky, silently praying that his gamble would pay off.


	20. Chapter 20

Bella stared at Edward's departing form, lost for a minute in her observation of his confident gait, the way that the blue suit emphasised his broad shoulders and slim waist and the dishevelled bronze mess that was his hair. As the door shut she turned her attention back to her coffee cup. Several female heads snapped back in unison, betraying the fact that she had not been the only person watching him leave. She sighed, having quite forgotten the effect that Edward had on women. She picked up a thick napkin and wafted her still glowing face with it. For that matter she had quite forgotten the effect that Edward had on her. The memory of his compliment caused her to blush afresh, dipping her head and biting her bottom lip to suppress a smile.

Her smile slowly fell into a frown as the aura that surrounded Edward wore off like cheap cologne leaving a lingering whiff of uncertainty. She didn't deserve him, she really didn't. He was a good provider for his family. He was willing to fight for her when she had hurt him with her infidelity. He even set up a safe environment for her to cheat when he thought that she was restless. Nevertheless the memories of those broken, demeaned women in the porn that he watched and the days that she had spent alone when he was at work and the nights that she had spent in bed alone and desperate for his touch, were still fresh in her mind. She wasn't sure if those obstacles could be overturned.

How much easier, she thought, would it be to start afresh with somebody like Jacob. No history to bring up in each and every argument, no business looming in the background threatening to ruin them. Just a guy and a girl dating. Yet Edward's suggestion that Jacob had broken their gentleman's agreement by approaching her did bother her. She didn't want to think of herself as a pawn, but Edward's request that Jacob give them a chance to patch their marriage up was a fair one. Surely a true gentleman would be happy to stand in the wings until the obstacles were clear? Jacob had lied about the camera and then failed to honour him and Edward's agreement. What else was he capable of doing?

In truth, Edward's suggestion that she still go out with Jacob on a date had unnerved her. She wondered for a moment whether it was a tactic, reverse psychology to make her cancel the date, but then she berated herself for reading too much into his actions. When she had fallen pregnant with Renesmee so many elements of choice had been taken away from her. It was strange, now, ten years later to be faced with the type of crossroads usually faced by people many years younger than her. The conflict between first love and lust, the family you have chosen versus the family that you are born with. It was almost overwhelming, the feeling that anything was possible.

Her first instinct was to cancel her date with Jacob and after a few moments of thought she concluded that this was still the best idea so took out her phone and texted Jacob a brief apology. She pulled her cardigan back on and put her phone back in her handbag. Today she would pack and say her goodbyes to Charlie, tomorrow it would be back to Seattle for a day at the office.

* * *

"Good morning Mrs Cullen," said the silver haired receptionist.

"Good morning Sandie," said Bella, smiling at the older woman. "First off, you've known me long enough to call me Bella." Sandie smiled cheekily in response. They both knew that she would continue calling her Mrs Cullen, as she always had done. "Also I believe that you have a new identification card ready for me?"

"I do," Sandie replied, fishing a freshly printed Cullen Industries card on a turquoise lanyard out of her top drawer and handing it to Bella. "This gets you in anywhere," she lowered her voice and leaned forward, "including Mr Cullen's private rooms." She winked and Bella found herself smiling in response.

"How things change," she sighed, dangling the lanyard between her fingers and watching it swing, "last time I was here it was just you manning the door with that little button under your desk. "

"I know," said Sandie, "I've still got the button but it's wired direct to the alarm company now so I've never had the chance to press it since."

"Talking of change," said Bella, putting the lanyard around her neck where it made a beautiful contrast to her dark charcoal skirt suit and white blouse, "how old are your grand twins now?"

"Twelve," said Sandie, "just a little bit older than your Renesmee. I can't believe," she added, in a slightly incredulous tone, "that you remembered."

"Of course I remembered," said Bella, furrowing her brow, "we spent plenty of lunch hours comparing photos."

"Sorry," Sandie flushed red, "I didn't mean it like that, it's just that you've been gone so long I wouldn't have thought that you'd remember things about me and my life."

"Of course I do," said Bella softly, "Kevin is the budding maths genius and Clara the promising violinist."

"That's right," replied Sandie, a pleased softness colouring her expression, "although Clara is starting to discover boys so I'm not sure how long she'll keep the violin up."

"Don't tell me that," groaned Bella, "I keep telling myself that puberty is ages away for Renesmee but it just keeps hurtling ever closer, making me feel old."

"Wait until you have grandkids..."

"Don't!" interrupted Bella. "Just don't!" They both laughed.

"Mrs Cullen?" said Sandie as Bella steadied herself to walk into the office for the first time.

"Yes?"

"I'm really glad to see you back." Bella smiled in response but the other woman wasn't finished. "People are scared, really scared. The editorial in the Greenburgh Examiner was bad but it's not the whole story. There are rumours that Cullen Industries have bitten off more than they can manage with the Greenburgh project and that the other two factories are now at risk. Nobody is talking about it at management level and it's just making things a million times worse."

"Has there not been any staff meetings?" Sandie shook her head. "Teleconferences?" She shook her head again. "Staff newsletters?" Another shake of the head.

"Okay," said Bella, "thanks for the feedback Sandie, it's really important that everybody knows what is going on. I'll make that my first priority." Sandie nodded gratefully. Bella walked to the door, swiped the brand new security pass in front of grey box and when the light turned green pulled open the double doors leading to the nerve centre of Cullen Industries.

* * *

Edward paced the patch of carpet in front of his desk restlessly. It was 9.45 and Bella still hadn't arrived. He had scheduled the management meeting for 10.00 in the expectation that she would be there. His body was full of restless energy and his brain lurched from emotion to emotion. He was excited to see her but nervous that she would decide not to come back and work by his side. He checked his watch again, dismayed that barely a minute had passed since he had last checked the time.

He opened the door to his inner office and looked into the smaller chamber beyond. Jessica was at her desk.

"We're going to have to postpone the management meeting," he barked.

"Why?" asked Jessica, looking up with surprise from her laptop screen.

"Bella hasn't arrived."

"Yes she has," Jessica looked at him with confusion. She rose to her feet and took a few steps toward the door, pulling it open for him. He looked at her for a moment. The excitement at the thought that Bella had arrived was tempered by only one ugly thought. Jessica was definitely dressed up more than usual. He hadn't seen that scarlet red skirt suit before and those patent heels were higher than she usually wore. He hoped that there wouldn't be any friction between the two women. "There," she said, pointing at Bella, surrounded by half a dozen people halfway between the door and the office. "She's been here since before 9.00 but she's not made it to your office yet. It seems that everybody is keen to welcome her back." Jessica's voice was emotionless, a little too bland for him to believe that she too was happy to see Bella back.

He watched her progress for a moment, entranced as she hugged one lady, shook the hand of a grey haired man and smiled and gracefully accepted a cake that appeared to have some sort of message iced onto the top. He had forgotten the way that she had with people. Bella must have felt him staring because she looked up and met his eyes from across the office. His stomach flipped for a moment as her face broke into a smile, her dark eyes twinkling their pleasure at seeing him. He couldn't help but smile back, their connection a pure unbroken link across time and space. He pulled up his shirt sleeve and pointed theatrically at his watch. _Sorry,_ she mouthed, holding up the cake to illustrate that she had been held up on her way to meet him. _Ten o'clock,_ mouthed Edward in response. She nodded, then turned her attention back to the small group of people that she had been talking to. It was amazing, thought Edward, that she had barely been back in the office for a few moments and he already felt less alone in his position at the head of the company. He looked forward to having her at his side in the management meeting.

* * *

Bella stood on the doorstep of Alice and Jasper's house, waiting on her sister in law to answer the door. She was still wearing the charcoal suit and white blouse. Although exhilarated by her first day at the office she was also exhausted and her feet throbbed in their shiny high heeled pumps. A hot bath and early night were calling but there had been a strange, unsettling tone to Alice's voice when she asked Bella to come straight round to help her with last minute arrangements for the baby shower that she couldn't ignore.

The door opened and Bella gasped. Her sister in law was wild and red eyed, a dirty T-shirt stretched tight over her massive bump, tracksuit bottoms pushed underneath. Her hair was wild, as if she had not brushed it since getting up in the morning.

"Bella," she sobbed, as if she had been holding in her distress all day, launching herself so hard at Bella that it nearly knocked her over.

"Alice, what is it?" She cradled her tiny sister in law against her chest, stroking her hair automatically. "What on earth is wrong?" She didn't speak, just cried harder into Bella's bosom.

"Come on," said Bella gently, putting her handbag down on the table behind the front door and shutting the door behind them. Bella made Alice a cup of herbal tea and she sipped it between sobs, seemingly unable to speak. The sobbing, as if her heart was breaking, was really starting to scare Bella. Every time she asked her what was wrong it made Alice worse so she resolved just to keep her company until she was ready to speak. After the tea she got Alice up and helped her to the bathroom, looking out clean underwear and soft maternity pyjamas for her to change into after her shower. It was still daylight outside but the bedroom curtains were closed and the bed unmade, almost as if Alice had been in bed all day. The mountain of tissues on her bedroom table was equally worrying. Where on earth was Jasper? His car wasn't outside and the bedroom looked remarkably bare of his things. The water was still running so Bella took the opportunity to open the doors of the fitted wardrobes. The first two were stuffed with Alice's clothes but the third was clearly Jasper's, although there were more hangers than clothes, the wardrobe space half empty.

Bella opened the curtains and the window to let some air into the hot, stuffy room. She shook out the comforter and peeled it back to let the bed breathe and picked up the mountain of tissues and put them in the wastepaper bin. Just when Bella was starting to get worried about Alice she reappeared from the bathroom in a cloud of citrus scented steam. Her face was still red and puffy but she had stopped sobbing.

"Do you want me to make you something to eat?" said Bella, gently. Alice nodded.

"It's Jasper," said Alice, finally, when the last bite of the boxed mac and cheese that Bella had made had been cleared from Alice's plate. "He's left."

"Like on a trip? Or...?" The silence stretched between them.

"The latter," replied Alice, her bottom lip starting to tremble again, "he's left for good."

"But why?" Bella was incensed, how could Jasper leave her at eight months pregnant? What sort of man would do that?

"It's my fault," said Alice.

"No it's not!" cried Bella. "What could you possibly have done to force him to leave when you are in this condition."

"This condition?" Alice's face contorted into an ugly sneer. "I'm pregnant, not sick and being in this condition, as you so delightfully put it, didn't stop me sleeping with someone else."

"An affair?"

"Nothing quite as grand as that," confirmed Alice, "more like fucking, although in fairness I wasn't showing much when it happened. Nobody would fuck me now."

"Wow," exhaled Bella, surprised by both her harsh tone of voice and deliberately crude choice of words.

"Oh god, it's so bad," Alice's sudden bravado melted away, her face falling back into abject misery, "I don't know what the hell I was thinking, I was so stupid."

"Does Jasper know?"

"Yes," said Alice, her chest starting to heave as sobs started racking her body again. "That's why he left."

"Who...?" Bella started to ask the question that was preying on her mind before cutting herself off, not sure of the reaction that the question would elicit.

"It doesn't matter who," snapped Alice. Bella nodded hastily, ashamed to admit to herself that the question had been selfish. She wanted to know whether it had been Jacob. He had been working at their house at the right time and by his own admission women often sought him out, pressing numbers or flesh into his hands. Yet she would never have pegged him as the type to seduce a pregnant women. Although Alice hadn't looked pregnant until she was quite far along. She tried to put the selfish thoughts to the back of her mind and concentrate on the situation in hand.

"Oh Alice," said Bella with a sigh, "what are we going to do with you?"

"I don't know," she said, honestly, the bleak look on her face more worrying to Bella than the tears. Bella rallied her thoughts and tried to focus on the practical issues.

"When did Jasper leave?"

"Yesterday," replied Alice.

"Just after he found out?" asked Bella

"Yes," nodded Alice, avoiding Bella's gaze as she pulled another tissue from a nearby box and started to dab her eyes again.

"So," clarified Bella, "he was still angry?"

"Really, really angry." Alice's mouth trembled again. "More upset than angry to be honest. He was really, really hurt."

"OK," said Bella, "he was angry and he's gone off. There's every chance that he will cool off and come back."

"Do you think?" Alice's voice was fragile.

"Of course," replied Bella briskly, "I've seen how much he loves you. I'm sure that you'll be able to work it out."

"Thanks Bella, you're a good friend."

Bella couldn't help but feel a bit of a hypocrite, who was she to give out relationship advice?


	21. Chapter 21

"And that," said Edward, flicking his power point presentation to the closing page, "is an update of the state of the business at the present time." He paused, scanning the silent faces, workers at the Seattle factory crammed into the break room, analysing his every word. "Any questions?" Bella had been watching him, rapt, throughout his presentation. Edward was always so confident and sure of himself in front of a crowd. He looked every inch the CEO in his dark suit and white shirt, a pale pink tie setting off his green eyes and bronze hair.

"Yes," a hand immediately went up in the audience, one of the supervisors, "why, when Cullen Industries seems to be on the edge of collapse, should we not just leave and find new jobs?" Bella winced a little at the question, moving her gaze back to Edward to see how he handled the question.

"As I explained..." he began smoothly.

"You explained nothing," cut in the man, and a murmur of agreement rippled through the room, "you gave us some politicians bull crap that doesn't mean anything. What about us? What about our families? Our livelihoods? It seems to me that we have everything to lose and you nothing." They were losing the crowd, she could feel it, the murmur was rising to a hubbub. She had to do something.

The murmuring in the crowd increased as Bella rose from her seat and walked in front of Edward with her arms wide in front of her in a gesture of peace.

"Hi," she said shyly, "I'm not sure how all this technology stuff works but I hope that you can give me a minute." The hubbub subsided a little. "You might not remember me, but I'm Bella Cullen." A murmur of recognition passed through the crowd and she couldn't help but smile as a few familiar faces nodded their heads or waved a hand. "I've been a stay at home mom these last few years but I'm still a fifty percent shareholder and now I'm back working in the business." She looked around, they seemed to be paying attention to her. "I know that it's hard," she continued, "the third factory at Greenburgh really is a stretch for the company, we've never made a secret of that. However, when it's complete the economies of scale and buying power that it will create will elevate the company to a whole different level. We just need to hang on in there."

"But what do you and Mr Cullen have to lose?" came the voice of the same man. "We all know that this company is built on debt and rented premises."

"Wow," said Bella, with a wry smile, "you lifted that phrase straight out of the editorial in the Greenburgh Examiner." The man coloured, his friends smiling and elbowing him, finding it hilarious that he had been rumbled so publicly. "Contrary to press reports the company does have assets. The accounts aren't a secret, any one of you who wants to see them is more than welcome. And as for what we have to lose?" The crowd looked at her expectantly. "Edward and I have put our house up against a loan to cover the extra costs of getting the factory at Greenburgh built." The room fell to complete silence. Out of the corner of her eye Bella could see Edward's shoulders tense. He hated revealing too much of himself to his staff. She ignored his tense posture and carried on. "If this project fails, we lose our house. We lose everything."

"What do you need?" bellowed a woman. Men and women nodded their heads, the mood of the cramped cafeteria changing, a buzz filling the air. Bella smiled, genuinely pleased by the capacity of people to pull together when the stakes were high.

"We need everybody to influence what they can and not to worry about the bits that they can't. So, we need the two factories working at full capacity, putting orders out that are top quality and on time to show the world that the Greenburgh project is not a distraction to the core business. The management team, including myself, will put our efforts into getting the new factory built to secure a future for all of us." Whilst not quite a cheer an affirmative noise spread around the room like a Mexican wave.

She glanced back at Edward but couldn't decipher the strange way that he was looking at her. Jessica flanked him, scrolling through e-mails on her phone. She wanted to speak to him but several people made their way to the front of the room to wish her well or tell her that they had relatives in Greenburgh that were desperate for the factory to be built. She was soon deep in conversation.

"She's a regular Lady Diana," remarked Jessica, glancing away from the screen of her mobile to look at Bella, surrounded by a small crowd of apparently adoring admirers. Edward turned his head and threw her a withering glance, prompting Jessica to drop her phone into her handbag and snap it shut with an audible metallic click.

"You're lucky she's here," continued Jessica, staring at her blood red manicure before raising her head to his with a saccharine sweet smile, "you're really not a people person."

"I am..." he started. Then he stopped, looking again at Bella. There was something so natural and unpolished about her, something warm that the people in the room were just lapping up. It was as if his hour long power-point presentation had meant nothing. Jessica's smile twisted toward smugness as the realisation that she was right must have flashed across his face.

"Don't worry about it," she said, rising to her feet and squeezing his arm in a surprisingly firm grip. Her perfume was sweet and metallic, an echo of the duality of her smile. "Some people are meant for the masses and some for the few." Her voice lowered a notch. "You're strong Edward. And cold. You're a man who can make the difficult decisions." He nodded, that was right, wasn't it? "Little Miss Sunshine over there is all very well when the going is good but it will be you keeping the proverbial shit together when it hits the fan. Well, and me, of course."

"Bella!" said Jessica, greeting her as she finally disentangled herself from the crowd with an air kiss. Edward didn't miss the slight stiffening in Bella's face. He hoped that the two women working together wasn't going to cause a problem. "What a wonderful speech," Jessica gushed, "just the antidote to Edward's facts and figures." Edward glared at her again but this time she ignored him, turning her back on him and taking Bella by the elbow to lead her toward the exit. Edward stayed behind for a moment, stuffing his laptop into his bag. In truth he felt more than a little uncomfortable with Bella's actions today. He liked to keep his private life private. How long would it be until one of the workers let slip that they could lose their home? He could only imagine the gleeful editorial Mike Newton would write if he knew. Yet he couldn't fault Bella's instinct. Somehow she had known just the right thing to say to bring everybody on board. The mood had changed since she stood up on that stage and talked openly and honestly about what was at stake.

"Edward," called Bella, her silhouette dark in the bright light of the doorway, "Jessica and I are going to get lunch, we'll see you back at the office." He didn't have time to lift his head or pass comment when the heavy fire door, swung shut, leaving him alone in the cafeteria. Nothing had ever happened with Jessica, although part of him had fantasised about it. So why did the thought of Bella and Jessica getting friendly put him so on edge? Why did this life that he had worked so hard to create seem to be running away from him?

* * *

"We must do this again," gushed Jessica, her face a little flushed from the two bottles of white wine that they had shared over lunch, "it's been so long."

"We should," said Bella, as the lift doors to take them up to reception closed. In the lift Jessica took out her always present phone and started checking e-mails, already switching back into work mode. Bella had enjoyed lunch with Jessica, she really had, whilst they hadn't spoken in a long time they had been best friends through the whole of high school and had a huge amount of shared history.

Yet, Bella couldn't help feeling a little uncomfortable. Firstly, she hadn't forgotten that Jessica had abruptly stopped speaking to her around the time that she got pregnant. It had hurt her terribly and when she never got a response as to what she had done wrong Jessica had simply ignored her. Bella had assumed that the stigma of being friends with the pregnant girl was too much for her and moved on with her life. Then there was the fact that there was something a little fake, a little forced, about Jessica's overtures. Of course, it made sense for them to be on civil terms if they were going to be working together but they didn't have to be bosom buddies. The last thing was the atmosphere between Jessica and Edward. After the second glass of wine she hadn't been shy in waxing lyrical about Edward's talents and what a good boss he was. There was nothing wrong with that in itself but Bella hadn't entirely forgotten her earlier jealousy. There was a strange atmosphere between the two that she couldn't put her fingers on. The looks, the silences, the strange fizzle of the atmosphere in their presence. If they hadn't been sleeping together, and she did believe Edward when he said that nothing had happened, then there was still something that they hadn't told her. She sighed to herself, hoping that it would come out in good time, just as she hoped that Alice would confide in her about what had happened there.

"Who is that?" asked Jessica, quietly but excitedly, as the doors opened to Cullen Industries reception. A tall, dark haired man with tight jeans covering a delectable bottom stood at reception beside a large bouquet of flowers. The man turned around and that she saw that it was Jacob, the tight black T-shirt setting off his dark hair and eyes and showing off his work toned biceps. "Oh my," whispered Jessica as he broke out into his trademark grin, all white teeth and twinkling eyes, "there is a god."

"Bella," said Jacob, enveloping her in a friendly hug before she could stop him, "just the person I was looking for, I thought I was going to have to leave the flowers without seeing you." Bella felt, rather than saw, Jessica glare at her. She muttered goodbye and stomped into the office with an angry little swipe of her security tag. Jacob was oblivious, his attention entirely focused on Bella.

"What are you doing here?" said Bella.

"Are you not happy to see me?" he said, cheekily.

"No," she replied, "I'm at work. This is entirely inappropriate."

"It's just flowers," he said, tipping his head to the side and fixing her with his puppy dog eyes, "and I've not even started being inappropriate yet. Plus," he said, taking a step forward and sniffing her breath, "it smells to me like you've already been a little bit inappropriate this lunchtime." Bella glanced past Jacob, noting that Sandie was trying to look as if she wasn't listening while obviously trying to listen in.

"Office, now," she growled.

"Whoa," he said, a mock serious look on his face, "when I said I was going to take things slow, I meant it. It would be entirely inappropriate for you to manhandle me in an office."

"Shut up, Jacob," this time it was her turn to smile, it was so hard to be serious with Jacob in the vicinity. "I just need to speak to you, I promise that I'll let you go with your honour intact."

"So," he said, when the door closed behind them. He didn't sit down. "Why did you cancel our date tomorrow night? I brought the flowers in person because I hoped that I could change your mind." He was close enough for Bella to smell him, the familiar haunting scent of man, fresh and earthy.

"It's just not a good idea," replied Bella, sitting down at the table. Taking her lead he copied her and sat down opposite her. The office was plush but they both circled each other slightly warily, the atmosphere more like an interrogation room than an office.

"Did _he_ tell you not to come?"

"No," snapped Bella, "and why the hell does everybody assume that all of my decisions are made by Edward? I'm my own woman."

"Sorry," he said, the softness of his voice and the crinkling of his eyes confirming that the sentiment went further than just words.

"Besides," said Bella, more than a little defiantly. "Edward said that I should go out with you."

"Great! I'll pick you up at eight then!"

"No, no," she cut in, shaking her head vehemently, her usual reserve eroded by the lunchtime wine. "I don't think you get it. Just because he said it doesn't mean that I will actually go out with you."

"Oh right..." he was clearly confused. "Wait, why not?"

"Because it's my choice."

"But you will, right?"

"No."

"Oh, okay." His head dropped, the exuberance of a moment ago visibly draining out of him.

"I need to ask you something," said Bella, changing the subject abruptly. He raised his head. "And I need you to be entirely honest with me." She knew that it would be difficult to ask Jacob about Alice but the extra helping of liquid Dutch Courage had steeled her to do just that.

"Of course I will," he replied, "you've seen for yourself that I can't keep a secret to save my life." An unexpected smile twitched at the corner of her lips; he had been adorable when he confessed about Edward's little scheme. He sat back in the chair, clearly confident that any question that she posed would not be a problem for him. "Shoot."

"Did you seduce Alice when you were working at her house?"

"What?" His nose crinkled and his top lip turned up as if he didn't understand the question.

"Alice," explained Bella, impatiently, "Edward's older sister, did you sleep with her when you were doing their renovations?"

"No, of course not. She was married." He looked at her then realised what he had said, breaking into a sheepish grin. "And pregnant."

"Well, it hasn't stopped somebody seducing her and I'd like to know whether it was you."

"Hell, no. I mean, Alice is a sweet girl, maybe a little bit on the crazy side, but not my type." His tone changed. "Wait, just how low is your opinion of me? Do you just think I go around the country seducing anything that moves?" It was Bella's turn to colour, really when she had said it out loud it did sound absurd.

"I'm sorry," she said, with a grimace. "Alice won't tell me who it was so I put two and two together and thought it might be you."

"Well, it's not, he said. "And you owe me an apology for making out that I'm some common or garden sleaze."

"Did you see any other men around?" she asked. If Jacob hadn't been the culprit perhaps he had some clues.

"A few, I guess," he said. "There was a car there a few times but I never saw the driver."

It stuck in my mind 'cause it was quite a flashy pick up. An Escalade, this years model. Really vulgar chrome wheels."

"But you never saw the driver?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Thanks," said Bella, although there really wasn't much for her to go on. Jacob's description of the car could apply to hundreds of cars and drivers.

"So," said Jacob, bringing Bella back from the place that her mind had been drifting to, "does this mean that you'll come out with me tomorrow night?"

"Um..."

"Don't say no," he cut in before she could make an excuse, "Edward knows so there will be no subterfuge and I promise that I'll treat you like a lady. Plus," he added, "I think you owe me one after those allegations about Alice."

"Um..." she was on the spot, trying to think of a reason to say no when she realised that there wasn't really an obvious one. "Yeah, I suppose so."

"Yeah," parroted Jacob in a sarcastic voice, although the twinkle in his eyes confirmed that he was back in good humour now, "I suppose so, just the words that every man wants to hear."

"Don't push your luck," she said, sternly.

* * *

"Hey," said Edward, as Bella walked back into his office. Or, should he say, their office since she had set up her laptop across the desk from his.

"Hey," she replied, tucking her handbag under the desk and sitting down heavily in the leather swivel seat.

"How was lunch?" he asked.

"Fine," said Bella, unlocking the screen on her computer and pressing a few letters of her password in with firm little taps. He knew enough not to ask her any more.

"You were amazing today, you know," he said, softly. She lifted her head from the screen and fixed him with her amazing brown eyes.

"Do you think?" she replied. "I could see you tensing up when I told the guys about the house, I thought you would be angry."

"Well," he said with a grimace, "in truth I was angry at the time but in hindsight I think that it was the best thing to do. People are suddenly on board with the whole thing. You did in ten minutes what I've been struggling to do."

"It's all about communication," she said with a smile. For a moment he wondered whether she was talking about more than just the business but when she continued he put the thought to the back of his mind, having decided that he was reading too much into things. "People hate hearing rumours or seeing another one of Mike Newton's editorials. They would rather hear the news directly from the source, even if it's bad."

"Noted," said Edward. "I don't think my power-point presentation was ever going to whip them into a frenzy."

"To be fair," said Bella, with a rich chuckle that reverberated through every fibre of his body, "I don't think any power-point presentation in the history of the world has whipped anyone into a frenzy."

"You've not seen my presentation on the financial projections for next year," he said, in a fake sexy voice that made her laugh again. It felt good, he thought, good to have her in the office, good to see her relaxed enough to laugh with him and good to have her by his side this morning supporting him. He couldn't put his finger on it but maybe things had started to go wrong when they stopped working together? Never mind the past, he thought, he had to make sure that he kept hold of her in the present.

"Bella?" he asked, making her lift her head from the screen again. "Do you want to go out tonight?"

"Sorry Edward," she replied, "I promised Alice that I would help her with the preparations for the baby shower."

"What, again?" he must have sounded surprised because Bella appeared taken aback. He tried to turn it into a joke. "Is this going to be the biggest baby shower ever?"

"Don't be ridiculous," said Bella, sternly, "Jasper's out of town, not that he would have wanted to help anyway, so of course it's right that I help her out."

"Of course, of course," said Edward, spreading his hands in front of him a defensive gesture. "Why don't we go out tomorrow night?"

"Oh," her face immediately flushed pink. "I can't."

"Why not?" The flush on her face told him without words exactly why but the masochist inside had to say it out loud.

"Um, sorry Edward, but I'm going out with Jacob." He sat looking at her silently, not quite sure how to deal with this. She must have felt uncomfortable because she carried on. "I mean, you did say..."

"You're right," said Edward, with a fake smile that he hoped covered the trembling of his beating heart, "I did. Emmett's been bugging me to go on a boys night anyway."

"Oh, Okay." Now it was her turn to look a little crestfallen. Shit, he thought, had he just given her up too easily? Had she expected him to fight for her? His plan of giving her enough space to come back to him was devilishly difficult when you got to the detail.

"I meant what I said in the café, Bella," he said, a virtually imperceptible wobble in his low voice the only indicator as to how deep in his soul these sentiments were coming from, "I want you back, for always and forever. I'll do whatever it takes, I'm even willing to stand in the wings while you get whatever this is out of your system but please, please don't keep me waiting to long."


	22. Chapter 22

Edward lit two candles, tall pale ghosts flickering on the dining table and casting shadows on the crisp white tablecloth. His famous lasagna was in the oven and a crisp green salad was in the fridge alongside a bottle of Bella's favourite white wine. The surprise was ready, all that he needed was for Bella to arrive home.

He smiled to himself, looking forward to seeing her face when she realised the effort that he had put into this meal. It wasn't haute cuisine but it was his, honest and hearty. He checked his watch for the hundredth time and turned the oven down a few degrees to makes sure that the top didn't catch.

* * *

Bella knocked on the door of Alice and Jasper's house, still conspicuously absent of Jasper's car in the driveway. After a few moments Alice answered the door and Bella was pleased to note that although her eyes were swollen and her face red and blotchy that she was at least washed and dressed.

"I brought Chinese," said Bella, holding up two cardboard noodle boxes with the name of a local restaurant emblazoned on the side in red letters.

"Thank god," said Alice, with a slight twinkle in her eye that reminded Bella of the old Alice, "a woman can only live on a diet of Lucky Charms and tinned spaghetti for so long." She opened the door wider to let Bella past. The living room, if a little untidy, smelled fresh and clean, a cool summer breeze drifting in through the French doors. Alice brought two ice cold diet sodas and they sat at each end of the huge squashy couch, legs crossed, eating Chinese food in companionable silence.

"How was your second day at work?" asked Alice, finishing first and putting the empty box and chopsticks down on the coffee table before leaning back against the couch, spreading her legs out in front of her and rubbing her bump.

"Fine," said Bella. She bit her bottom lip, trying to suppress a smile.

"Go on," said Alice, stretching her foot out a little further so that she could poke Bella's knee with her pastel blue painted toenails, "you don't need to filter anything to spare my feelings."

"It was brilliant," said Bella, putting the chopsticks down and turning her head towards Alice, "we had this big staff meeting at the Seattle factory, with literally hundreds of people there."

"Don't tell me," said Alice, with a knowing smile, "my brother did one of his famous power-point presentations?"

"He did," said Bella, grinning and twisting noodles clumsily around the chopsticks.

"He'll never change," said Alice, shaking her head. "What did you do?"

"I fielded some questions afterwards."

"Thank God," said Alice, "I love Edward to bits but sometimes he's more like a robot than a real human being."

"Well," said Bella, diplomatically, "I think we do work well as a team." She didn't want to get into too much of a conversation about exactly how well her and Edward worked as a team so she quickly changed the subject. "How are you today? Have you heard from Jasper?"

"No," said Alice, looking away, her hands naturally moving down to her bump as if she could protect it from the horrors of the world. "I didn't leave any messages today." Bella looked at her, questioning. "I've not given up on him," continued Alice, vehemently, "I just figure that I need to give him some space to calm down."

"I just don't understand how it happened," said Bella, before her brain could filter out the words, "I mean, you two always looked so happy."

"We were..." She stopped then corrected herself, clearly not ready to talk about Jasper in the past tense. "We are." She looked forlorn and Bella desperately hoped that she hadn't set her off crying again. "But _he_ was just so persistent." Tears were pooling in the bottom of her eyes as she looked straight at Bella, wishing her to understand. " _He_ 's been coming on to me for years. I mean, quite literally years and years and I always brushed it off as a bit of a joke. But when I was only a few weeks pregnant and feeling hormonal and insecure he was there, telling me that I was beautiful, telling me all the things that he would do for me if I was his. Eventually I just gave in." The tears did start to fall, rolling down her cheeks unchecked. "We did it once and I wanted to end it there, you know, put it down as one stupid mistake. But he kept coming back. At first it was fun, I felt wanted, alive, sexy. But when I tried to stop he threatened to tell Jasper unless I kept on..." Bella's mouth dropped open in shock and horror.

"Whoever _he_ is _, he_ sounds like a real piece of work," said Bella, pointedly.

"He is," said Alice. "Eventually I confessed to Jasper just to take back a bit of control."

"Wow," said Bella, reaching a hand out to rub one of Alice's feet in what she hoped was a comforting manner.

* * *

"Where have you been?" The living room was dark, the only source of light the flickering of the television.

"Edward?" asked Bella, peering into the darkened room, trying to make out if the human shaped lump was actually Edward. "Why are you sitting in the dark?"

"The real question is why are you home so late?" His voice was cold and angry, but then the hardness leaked out of it as he continued, "I made dinner."

"Oh sorry," she said, glancing through the dining room door across the hall and noticing that the table was set. "Alice and I had Chinese." He looked at her, a green eyed stare that she couldn't fathom.

"I wanted to surprise you."

"Edward," she sighed, sitting down next to him heavily, "I told you at lunchtime today that I was seeing Alice after work."

"I forgot."

"So," she said, in a voice that she couldn't help sounding accusative, "you're angry with me for missing dinner but in reality you're actually angry with yourself for forgetting that I told you I was out?"

"No," he said, indignantly, but the stubborn tilt of his chin only stayed in place for a moment. "Oh wow," he said, breaking out into a smile, "you're right, I'm an awful husband."

"You're not an awful husband," said Bella, curling her knees up under herself on the squashy couch and draping her hand along the back so that it was almost touching him, "you're just a rubbish listener." This time it was her turn to smile, a lopsided, wry twist of her face. "Always have been."

"Ouch," said Edward, his smile starting to turn down at the corners. "That hurts."

"Truth hurts." They sat in silence for a moment, the television, now on silent, dancing away in the corner of the room with neither of them watching it.

"We could still drink the wine?" he offered, tentatively.

"Edward Cullen," said Bella, the sudden dryness in her mouth making her voice huskier than the light-hearted tone that she had been aiming for, "are you trying to get me drunk?"

"Maybe," he said, in a tone that was definitely flirtatious. "Do you think that it would work?"

"You've never needed to get me drunk to get your wicked way with me," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Do you remember Morocco?" he said. She nodded, making love on a sunbaked rooftop with the sounds of the city drifting up from below. He turned in his seat so that he was sitting with his legs tucked under him, his position mirroring hers.

"What about Emmett's twenty first?"she countered. He nodded, a smile spreading across his face. They had enjoyed a furious quickie in Emmett's parent's guest bathroom.

"It's not all been bad, has it?" His voice was quiet, tentative.

"No," she said, a flush spreading across her face at the knowledge that she had of Edward, his body, the scars, the long panes, the lean muscle. She struggled to suppress a smile as further memories flooded her. The way that his face contorted as he orgasmed, the dirty smile as he looked up from between her legs with juices all over his face, the way that he had groaned in surprise and arousal the first time that she had licked his anus.

"Where did we go wrong?" he whispered, running a finger from her ear down to her jawline. Instinctively she took hold of his hand, rubbing her cheek against like it like a pussy cat scent marking her property. His hand was warm and familiar, his scent flooding her nostrils. His green eyes observed her as if she was a rare treasure and when he moved his hand so that he was cupping her cheek to tilt her head towards his kiss she did not stop him.

The kiss was familiar yet strange at the same time. She knew his lips like the back of her hand, knew their shape and texture yet there was something new in this kiss, something urgent in the way that his tongue tangled with hers, a raw, unpolished element that spoke to her very soul. Her hands went to his hair, burying themselves naturally in the messy bronze mass. The hand that was not cupping her cheek moved to her knee, feeling supernaturally hot through her thin summer work trousers. She moaned imperceptibly as the simple gesture sent sparks of desire flying through her body. Encouraged, his movements became more urgent. He pulled back for a moment, questioning her with his heavy, lust filled eyes. He appeared to like what he saw for in a moment he was dragging the suit jacket down over her shoulders and discarding it rudely on the sofa. He didn't even bother pulling it off just went to the neck of her blouse, unbuttoning the top two buttons so fast that she scarcely registered what he was doing. His lips moved from her lips to her neck, nibbling, kissing and sucking until her breath came in fast little gasps. His deft fingers undid the fourth and fifth buttons on the blouse so that it fell open and exposed the lacy white bra underneath. He groaned out loud as his hands cupped her breasts pushing the mounds together and running tantalising little kisses from her neck, across her collar bone and down to the swell of her breasts.

BRRRRING. BRRRING. The loud tone of Edward's phone jolted them out of the moment. They both froze, parental instinct kicking in. Edward fished in his pocket and pulled out the phone. Emmett's name and face flashed up on the screen. He discarded it on the floor and moved to kiss her again.

"Stop," said Bella. The phone call had come just in time for Bella. Edward's proximity and his deft fingers and hot kisses had driven her to the edge of insanity for a moment, the kind of insanity that could only be slaked by taking him to bed. She pulled the edges of the thin blouse together and started to button them up. BRRRING. BRRRING. He looked at her, paused. "Answer it then," she snapped, standing up and pulling the edges of the blouse crudely together because her fingers wouldn't work fast enough. Edward sighed, the finality in her body language hitting home as he slumped back in the squashy sofa.

"Hey," he picked up the phone. "No," he paused, looking at Bella in a way that she couldn't decipher, "just hanging out, watching television." She picked up the discarded suit jacket and scurried to the safety of the guest bedroom for an early night.

* * *

"You look nice," said Edward.

"Oh," she replied, taken aback that he would compliment her on the summer dress and sandals that she was wearing for her date with Jacob, "thanks." She saw that his collar was crooked and walked over to him, pulling it into place. "There," she said, patting him on the shoulder as one might pat a small child, "you don't look so bad yourself now." The moment was slightly awkward, both of them waiting to be picked up. She moved her clutch from one hand to the other, not quite sure what the protocol was.

"So..."

"So..."

They both laughed, the tense atmosphere immediately dispelled.

"You first," said Edward, with the kind of lopsided, cheeky grin that always made her swoon.

"So," she began for the second time, "where are you and Emmett going tonight?"

"Not really sure," said Edward, "dinner and drinks I think."

"Well, try to stay out of trouble," she said, "you know what Emmett's like."

"Please, not tonight," he said, suddenly cold, "you're always so down on Emmett." This was a subject that they had rowed over many times before. She didn't want to start an argument so she walked into the living room. Edward followed and they sat in silence until headlights appeared through the twilight, the unmistakable shape of a pick-up truck.

"That'll be Jacob," she said, springing to her feet. In a few steps she was at the front door, throwing it wide as the car crunched to a stop at the front door. Where she had expected to see a red Ford sat a dark coloured Escalade pick-up with chrome wheels. Emmett's face materialised as the window wound down.

"Eddie!" Edward materialised behind her, brushing gently past her touching her shoulder deliberately then taking the stairs two at a time, high fiving Emmett as he hung out of the window then walking around the vehicle to get into the passenger seat. The driver's window wound back up and as Emmett pulled away with a crunch of gravel bass heavy music burst into life. She shook her head, her opinion of Emmett as an idiot confirmed yet again. She hadn't seen that truck before, it must be new and it was pretty flash. She froze for a moment, suspended in a dreamy cloud of musky men's cologne, surely Emmett wouldn't have...? She pushed the thought to the back of her mind with a frown, reasoning that Emmett was an idiot but that even he must have limits. Yet something bubbled to the surface, a memory of something old and painful and long suppressed, an idea of exactly what he was capable of...

Car headlights cut again through the fading summer light and this time it was the red truck. Putting all unpleasant thoughts to the back of her mind she opened the door and stepped out to the waiting Jacob.


	23. Chapter 23

"Are you alright?" Jacob stopped the truck right in front of the house, making the security light come on.

"Fine," said Bella, flashing him a smile, "I had a really nice time tonight."

"I'm glad," he said, taking her words on face value. "I thought that you might have been a bit mad at me for keeping an eye on the Seahawks game."

"Not at all," replied Bella, "Charlie's a huge fan, I understand how important it is."

"I promise that next time you'll have one hundred percent of my attention."

"Oh," she said, teasing him, "you think there's going to be a next time?"

"I'm sure there's going to be a next time," said Jacob, putting the handbrake on and turning to face her. Outside the security light, sensing no more movement, switched off again, plunging the cab of the truck into velvet soft darkness.

"And what makes you so confident?" She turned her face towards his, suddenly aware of how close they were and how warm and masculine his musky cologne was. He smiled in the darkness of the cab, a grin so broad that she could see the silhouette of his face change shape.

"Well," he replied, his tone soft, "I've taken you out, treated you like a gentleman and now I'm going to escort you to the front door and kiss you so nicely that you'll be begging me to take you out again."

"That sounds very civilised," replied Bella, moving her head a little closer to his with the confidence of the best part of a bottle of white wine coursing through her veins, "but who says I don't want to be one of those girls that gets down and dirty right here?" It was her turn to smile when he gulped audibly.

"Don't do that to me," he groaned, shifting in his seat and rearranging his crotch, "I said that I would take things slow and I meant it."

"Come on then," she said lightly, not sure whether she was pleased that he had followed through with his promise to be a gentleman or disappointed that he had not tried to ravish her regardless. She moved to open the door but before she had a chance to swing it open fully he was there, throwing it as wide as it would go and taking her by the waist, lifting her effortlessly down to the gravel below. When her feet were safely on solid ground his hands did not leave her waist. She looked up, catching his intense dark gaze and the question in his eyes. She parted her lips and moved her head a little closer to his, her intention clear. In a moment his lips were upon hers. The kiss was warm and well intentioned but he felt stiff and nervous against her. She wrapped her arms around his torso and tried to pull him closer, her body suddenly craving his warm hardness yet he resisted, keeping a respectable gap between them. When she tried to deepen the kiss he pulled away.

"Bella," he whispered. His voice was soft yet there was something in the way that he looked at her, his head cocked to one side, his tone reminiscent of the way that one would talk to a small child, that put her on edge. "Gentleman, remember?"

"Fuck gentleman," she said, perversely enjoying the way that he recoiled at her curse word. "You weren't a gentleman when you took me on that kitchen table." He stared down at her, head still cocked, mouth open but nothing coming out. "You weren't a gentleman when you pulled my hair and took me from behind." The pause lengthened. "You weren't a gentleman when you agreed to seduce me while my husband watched."

"I meant it Bella," he bleated, "let's take it slow."

"You've seen me naked, Jacob," she said, slamming the truck door with a vigour that reverberated through the quiet suburban air "what's the point in treating me like I'm some sort of virginal nun figure now?" She guessed by the way that his mouth opened and shut that he didn't have a reasonable response. She took a deep breath, letting her little peak of frustration melt away. She tipped her own head to the side and hooked her hands into his belt loops, using her body weight to pull him against her so that he had pinned her to the door."Come on Jacob," she said, her mouth pursed, her voice almost childish, "why don't you at least give me a proper kiss goodnight?" She could feel the hardness of his length pressing against her stomach and arched her body in anticipation of a mind blowing kiss. His lips touched hers, dry and chaste as the kiss of an elderly grandfather.

"No," he said, his voice firmer now. "We're doing this right or we're not doing it at all." He gently unfurled her fingers from his belt loops and stepped away from her, putting some fresh air between their bodies. "Let's get you to the house."

* * *

Bella glanced at the clock. It was one in the morning but Edward hadn't arrived home yet. An empty glass of white wine sat in front of her, a half finished bottle behind it and a Scandinavian print lambswool blanket draped over her legs. Several family photograph albums lay scattered around her. She hadn't known what to do with herself when Jacob had driven away. He had given her another grandad kiss at the front door and she had agreed to see him again yet she had felt empty, somehow unsatisfied by their evening. She wasn't ready to go to bed and after gathering the wine and the remote control she quickly realised that there was nothing on television to pique her interest. The family albums had provided distraction over the last couple of hours. There were photographs of Renesmee as a baby, chubby and grinning. There were photographs of her and Edward with Renesmee, taking turns behind the camera or pushing her on a swing or holding onto her tight as they sped downhill on a sledge. There were happy group photographs, Charlie and their friends squashed into their first little two bedroom house for her third birthday party. They had been such a tight knit little threesome when they lived in first Greenburgh, then Forks.

The pictures changed around the time that the house in Seattle was purchased. They obviously had a better camera because the pictures were clearer and better composed in a technical sense. Yet the scenes captured themselves became stiffer, more posed. There were photos of them at Alice and Jasper's wedding, photos of Renesmee taken by the school photographer and many posed photographs of the three of them on a cruise or at an all inclusive hotel. The silly photographs petered out, the ones where they were just playing, or relaxing at the formal ones remained, the ones taken because it was a situation where social convention dictated that you take a photograph, rather than for the sheer joy of capturing a family moment.

Bella was just starting to ponder what the photographs meant when the door opened, indicating that Edward had arrived home.

"Hello?" she called as she heard the door open. She heard him close the door behind him then the key seemed to hit the metal surroundings of the lock several times before actually managing to turn in the lock. She winced a little, Edward must be pretty drunk. Her suspicions were confirmed when he appeared in the doorway of the living room, using the frame to hold himself up.

"Evening beautiful," he said, his words slurred. He bent town and took a few moments to untie each shoelace before straightening up and kicking each shoe into different corners of the hallway. "Wotchadoing?"

"Drinking wine and looking at some old photos," she said evenly, although she wanted to tell him that it would it have been obvious if he wasn't so drunk. "How was your night with Emmett?"

"Fine," he said. She ground her teeth together slightly. Edward was always like this, short on information, especially when it came to Emmett. He must have sensed that his answer wasn't enough for her so he continued. "Good?" he said. His tone was tentative, trying to suss out in his drunken state whether this would be enough for her. "We had shots."

"So I can see."

"How was your date?" he asked. The emphasis was on the word date as if it was something dirty that he could barely bring himself to say.

"Fine," she said, crossing her arms across her chest, pleased to be able to give him a taste of his own medicine. "Good."

"I'm glad," he replied, his tone making clear that he was anything but. "Any wine left?" She lifted the bottle and showed him it. "I'll get a glass."

* * *

Bella sat at her desk, sipping a huge mug of black coffee. She felt pretty bad after all of the wine last night but she suspected that Edward, who had disappeared to the bathroom for a suspiciously long time, would be feeling a hell of a lot worse. The evening had actually picked up when Edward joined her. It was cold so he pulled the blanket over his knees too and they had sat looking at photographs together until the wee small hours. She smiled to herself, remembering the way that his thigh had felt pressed against hers and the tears that had formed in his eyes, unshed, when they looked at pictures of Renesmee and how he had automatically put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer, as if he needed her to be closer to his heart.

"Bella," it was Jessica, breaking into her little daydream. Her huge clackety heels followed her urgent voice and in a moment she was by Bella's side, enveloping them both in a cloud of sweet scent. "Have you seen?"

"Seen what?"

"Shit," she said, "that means you've not seen." She pulled out her mobile phone and tapped in a code to unlock the screen. A social media feed flashed up. The photograph was a busty brunette, pictured from the torso up in just a bikini top. Bella looked up at Jessica, not sure why this was worthy of her urgent tone. Jessica pointed right back at the screen. Bella looked at it again and frowned, reading the latest update.

 _OMG – Edward Cullen is an amazing tipper – he can come back any time!_

Jessica minimised the screen and pulled up another one in a couple of well practised moves.

 _Former football player Emmett McCarty and his friend, millionaire businessman Edward Cullen, seemed to be enjoying themselves at the Shaven Haven in Seattle last night. Onlookers said that they bought champagne and tequila shots before tucking notes into the thongs of their favourite dancers._

Jessica scrolled down again. Bella's first reaction had been that it couldn't be true however the series of grainy photographs underneath it confirmed her worst fears. The quality was poor but it was definitely Edward and Emmett. Jessica's frantic thumbing stopped and when the scrolling stopped Bella was overcome by a wave of nausea. The figure was unmistakably Edward and there was a woman gyrating just inches away from his crotch.


	24. Chapter 24

When the door to the bathroom opened to reveal a red eyed Edward, Bella was waiting for him. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"About what?" He looked confused, taking a step back at the sight of her angry face. He was unshaven, his shirt unbuttoned at the neck, the tie hanging limply below.

"About the strippers," she hissed.

"Oh that," said Edward, raking a hand nervously through his messy bronze hair and casting his eyes around for an escape route.

"Yes, that," said Bella. Edward's eyes flicked over her shoulder and she sensed, rather than saw, Jessica's presence.

"Let's take this to our office."

"Yes, let's."

Edward sat down at his desk, his body slumping into his chair like a sack of potatoes. Through the floor to ceiling windows the whole of Seattle was visible, bathed in late summer sun, yet it could have been black and white because Edward was the only thing that she could focus on. She took a deep breath and as she exhaled there was an audible wobble. She took two more and finally her breathing became more even, her heart rate dropping slightly compared to a few moments before when it had been hammering almost painfully against the wall of her chest.

"Jessica kindly showed me the pictures," she began, putting her hands on her hips as she looked down at him in his chair, "what the hell were you thinking?"

"I wasn't thinking anything," he said, dismissing her comment with a flippancy and a shrug of his shoulders that made her heart rate start to rise again. "Emmett and I had a few beers then he said he knew a place. Next thing I knew we were in a strip club."

"And you just had to stick twenty dollar bills down a strippers G-string?" He winced a little and she wondered whether he had even seen the photos.

"It's not like it looks," he began.

"It's not?" she snapped. "It looked a lot to me exactly like you were shoving cash down somebody's G-string while they gyrated above your crotch. Do tell me how that can possibly be anything but exactly how it looks?"

"Emmett paid for the dance to cheer me up," he explained, taking a sip from the steaming mug of black coffee that sat on his desktop then putting it back down when he discovered it was still too hot to drink. "He paid the minimum and didn't even tip. Crystal's an art major so I thought that it would be nice to tip her to help her on her way."

"Crystal?" A red rage started to rise within Bella, the kind of irrational cloud that would solidify and become hard to contain. Edward gulped, she could see his adams apple move up and down. "You were talking to her long enough to find out her name and her college major?"

"Well, it was a little bit uncomfortable in the private booth..."

"Wait? That was a private booth?"

"Yes," he said, his eyes widening as he realised that he had added fuel to the fire rather than diffusing the situation. "That's where private dances happen..."

"Mike bloody Newton is going to have a field day over this." Her hands moved from her hips to a more defensive position crossed across her chest. One foot started to tap, an irregular little pitter patter as her mind worked through all of the possibilities. "Greenburgh is touch and go but the CEO is carousing around the countryside with strippers."

"Why are you so bothered what Mike Newton writes?" He picked up the coffee again, this time nursing it between his two hands, blowing on the surface creating little coffee ripples. "You're usually the first person to tell me that Mike Newton is a douchebag and that we should ignore whatever he writes in his poison pen editorials."

"This is different," said Bella, "there are photos. If he runs with the story it will be the truth rather than opinion."

"Take Mike Newton and the company out of the equation," he said, softly, "does it bother you?"

"Of course it does!" The words burst out of her mouth before she could think what they meant.

"Even though," he gripped the coffee tighter as if it was some sort of comfort blanket, "you were out with Jacob last night?"

"You told me to go out with Jacob," she said, her voice low and laced with venom.

"I didn't think that you would actually go," he said, taking a tiny sip of coffee.

"So it was some kind of reverse psychology thing?"

"No." He shook his head. "Maybe." He shrugged his shoulders. "Of course I didn't want you to go out with Jacob but given that I pushed you to him in the first place I thought that it would be a little hypocritical of me to ask you not to see him again."

"You thought...?" Her breath quickened, coming in ragged little gasps as she sought to keep control of her temper. "You thought?" He nodded, eyes wide, bracing himself visibly. "Did you ever think to ask me about anything? You thought that you could fix our marriage with a diamond tennis bracelet and an expensive holiday. You thought that ignoring me and watching porn would keep us both satisfied. You even thought that setting up a _safe_ environment for me to fuck somebody else was a good idea. Did you ever think about asking me what I wanted?" He pursed his lips together and looked away, suddenly interested in the coffee that was still clutched tight in his hands.

* * *

Bella was on the edge of an apocalyptic blow up and nothing that Edward was saying or doing was doing anything to help. He pursed his lips together to try to keep himself from smiling. She was jealous, he was absolutely sure of that and the thought gladdened him and filled his bloodstream with a kind of warm, tentative hope. The hope felt fragile and he wondered how he could manage the situation.

"I think about what you want all the time," he replied, as calmly as he could, although if she was listening carefully she would have been able to hear the emotional wobble in his voice. "In fact, everything that I do is for you and Renesmee."

"Well, you're doing it wrong then," she said.

"What do you want from me?" he said, exasperated, putting his coffee down onto the table hard enough that hot black liquid slopped back over the side. "I've done what I think is best at every turn but it's just not good enough for you, is it?" He opened first his bottom drawer, then the second, pulling out a wad of napkins and using them to mop up the spilled liquid.

"No, it's not." He stopped mopping up the coffee and looked up at her. She had never looked more beautiful with her dark eyes blazing, her mahogany hair loose around her shoulders and a red flush spreading over her creamy skin, a trembling bundle of emotion. "I don't want tennis bracelets or shiny new cars or expensive holidays. I just want a husband who actually cares."

"Do you think I don't care?" He stood up, pushing the wheeled chair back abruptly. He moved round the desk to the front of it then leaned back slightly against the dark wood structure. She was mere feet away from him now, her chest heaving up and down in the light coloured blouse.

"Of course I care."

"They why don't you ever show it?"

"I think we're beyond childish shows of jealousy."

"Maybe I want you to show that you're jealous." Her eyes blazed, her voice rising. "Maybe all that I want is for you to stop acting like some self righteous morality robot and start acting like you give a toss about me. As far as I can see at the moment you couldn't give a toss whether I fuck Jacob again or even if I fuck the whole of the Seahawaks squad."

"That's not true," he growled, and before he could stop himself he had closed the gap between them and had taken both of her upper arms in his grip. "It makes me sick to the stomach thinking about you and him." She looked up into his eyes, so close that he could see the angry glaze over the dark centres and feel her hot breath on his face.

"Then why did you set the whole thing up? And why don't you fight for me?"

"You'd cheated once already," he said, and it was her turn to wince, "I was pretty sure that you would do it again so I thought that if I could control it that I would be able to handle it."

"Edward, all I wanted was you present and in our bed, not distant and addicted to porn," she shook her head. "Don't you see that the guy from the cheese bar was just a last gasp attempt to make you notice me? To stir up some emotion?"

"Well it made me feel inadequate and every time that I couldn't perform after that was like an added little insult."

"Edward..."

"Don't Edward me in that voice," he said, letting go of her arms and stepping back, "you could have made me feel better about it, instead you huffed and puffed and made clear that I wasn't satisfying you."

"But can you understand why I was angry? You seemed to be able to get it up just fine for those whores on the webcams but you couldn't get it up for me? It felt like you took away another little shred of my dignity or self respect every time that you couldn't get it up or pretended to be asleep." She paused for a moment, her brain clearly working behind unnaturally bright eyes. When she spoke again her voice was an octave slower and more controlled. "Why didn't you fight for me?" He opened his mouth, not sure how to even start answering that question. "Why didn't you show me you were jealous? Why didn't you start a fight with Jacob and warn him off me? All this gentleman's agreement nonsense feels like you're negotiating over some sort of asset rather than trying to win your wife back."

"It's complicated..." his voice sounded thin and whiny even to his own ears.

"Complicated?" she spat. "Do tell."

"Look Bella," he said, running his hands through his already messy hair then resolving not to touch it again on the basis that it already looked wild enough, "I need you to choose me, okay?" She looked at him, not nodding or shaking her head but eyeing him in a way that made it clear that needed him to continue. "You were stuck with me once I got you pregnant and you came back to me after sleeping with the cheese guy for reasons that I can't fathom. Money? Familiarity? I don't know why." He shrugged his shoulders. "This thing with Jacob was a huge mistake, I can see that now, even though it was well intentioned. To have any hope of saving this marriage I need to know that you choose me, that it's your choice not to see Jacob any more rather than me warning him off. I need to know that I'm your first choice for life and not your best alternative."

"Of course you're my first choice," she said and it was her turn to take a step toward him and put a hand on his arm. "You always have been."

"Then why did you go out with Jacob again last night?"

"It's complicated..." She dropped her hand from his arm, leaving a hot mark imprinted in the memory of his skin and he laughed, the irony that she had just turned his own argument against him not lost on him. "Jacob is sweet and funny and unburdened by the pressures of running a company or having a screwed up wife and a child to support. He's refreshing. He makes me happy." Edward glared at her. "No, wait," she said, shaking her head, "that's not right, he makes me sad. He makes me remember a time when we were young and carefree and happy and where life had infinite choices. Don't you ever wonder what life would be like if I hadn't got pregnant? If we had both gone off to college and had the kind of opportunities that other kids our age had?"

"No." His voice had a finality that made Bella look at him with a fresh new wideness to her gaze. "I made my choice Bella. Now it's your turn to choose."

"I choose you," she whispered. Edward looked at her so quizzically that she wasn't sure if he had heard her. "I choose you," she said, a little louder. The air exhaled from Edward like harsh air escaping from a balloon. In a moment he had closed the gap between them and wrapped his arms around her. His lips found hers, a needy, urgent mashing that made her wrap her arms around his neck to keep her steady. His stubble was hard on her soft lips but it was a tangible reminder that Edward was not perfect, that he was a flawed human being, here and ready to love her and she kissed him back harder, the slight discomfort a turn-on. His tongue was probing and she encouraged him, kissing his harder, winding her hands in his hair, urging him to take her harder as she moaned into his mouth, a mixture of ecstasy, agony and relief that her husband was her with her.

He turned her around, sitting her on his desk, pushing her skirt up her creamy thighs and standing between them as he sought to get his body as close to hers as possible. It was summer so her legs were bare and she wished for a moment that she was wearing nicer underwear than simple white cotton panties, yet all sensible thoughts left her mind as Edward dropped his head to her neck, kissing and sucking in urgent little movements that connected directly to her pussy. She wound her legs around him and pulled him closer to her, bracing herself against the tabletop. He went to unbutton the top button of her blouse but it must have reminded him too much of two nights ago because instead of unbuttoning he ripped it open, half a dozen little buttons spreading across the room, discarded casualties of his unbridled lust. She could barely breathe, her chest heaving as she tried to keep her head clear against the surge of lust and adrenaline that coursed through her bloodstream. As he crudely pulled first one breast then the other out of her sensible white bra and sucked each nipple hard the breath escaped her in a low, animalistic whimper.

Who is this woman? he thought, the wanton temptress on his desk with her legs spread, her face flushed with the heat of arousal and eyes only for him.

"Whore," he said, before he could think about what the words meant. Instead of shouting at him she stared up at him through hooded lust-filled eyes.

"Your whore," she whispered, her voice low and so sensual that it made his already swollen cock twitch in his pants. He twisted a nipple cruelly, a smile creeping over his face as she whimpered, looking at him through wide eyes. He slapped a breast with the back of his hand, not hard but enough to sting. She closed her eyes and bit her lip with her bottom teeth. He paused for a moment, his feelings for Bella flashing through his brain in a complicated whirl of lust and emotion. He wanted her, hell he wanted her so much that he could barely contain himself. But he was angry with her, angry for the cheese man, angry that she continued to date Jacob. He didn't know if he could put a veneer of civility over that. But the way that she was looking at him, the way that she was submitting to him made part of him think that she wanted him to punish her. She opened her eyes again, coming back to her senses slightly, and as he looked into the wild unfathomable depths he was lost.

He unwrapped her legs from around his waist and put them back on the floor before flipping her over so that she was bent over the table. He unzipped the skirt and heard her gasp as it fell to the floor. Instead of the lacy thong that he had imagined she was wearing a pair of white cotton panties that covered most of her bottom. He groaned. There was something so virginal about that lingerie that helped to symbolise a fresh start for him. There was also something incredibly hot about that the fact that she was now wearing them with high heels bent over his desk. He pushed a hand between her legs and bit his own bottom lip with his teeth as he discovered that she was already wet. She whimpered, pushing back against his hand. She tried to twist her position, to reach out for his hardness but that wasn't what he wanted.

"No," he said, pushing her flat against the table and pushing his crotch against her bottom so that she groaned and squirmed. "I'm in control here." She whimpered but stilled and he moved to her panties, pulling them down her legs and moving each ankle one at a time so that she could step out of them. He moved them to his face for a moment, breathing in her familiar scent, then he hooked one leg hole over her right arm and pulled it behind her back, pushing her face and her breasts against the cold table top. He guided her left arm into the other leg hole and stepped back a moment to admire his handiwork. Sure, it was crude and she could get out of it if she wanted to but as she stood there, her ass bare to the world, her arms suspended behind her back and her torso flat against the table he knew that she wanted this to continue as much as he did.

He spread her meaty bum cheeks, marvelling at the weight and heat of them in his hands. Dropping to his knees he admired the view, the glistening wet centre of her pussy, pink and engorged, and the little rosebud of her anus. He buried his face in her pussy, revelling in her warm scent, rubbing his stubble against her sensitive lips, burying a tongue deep within her centre until she moaned and pushed back further until he could barely breathe. He licked his tongue up and down the length of her slit, pushing her hard against the table to stop her squirming as he flicked a tongue back and forward across her engorged clitoris. She was close, he could feel it in the way that she moved and whimpered. He was glad because he was sure that he wouldn't be able to last long given the way that his cock felt right now restrained in the confines of his stiff work pants.

Getting to his feet he unzipped his pants, breathing a sigh of relief as his length escaped from its tailored prison. Suddenly a scene flashed through his brain, unbidden. He paused for a moment, unable to move as the unpleasant memory clouded his senses. It was the memory of watching Jacob with his wife, the unpleasant comparing of his own manhood to that other man's. Was he enough for her now? Would she be thinking about Jacob's more girthy cock?

"Edward," she moaned, breathlessly, "please." The tone of her voice was urgent, even desperate and there was something about it that managed to override his insecurities and speak to his lust filled centre. His cock twitched back to life and he pushed her down against the desk and eased himself into her slick wetness in one swift movement. In that moment he owned her. He was master of her pleasure and she was a vessel for him to obtain his own pleasure. Yet there was something deeper about their coupling, something more visceral, like there was a strange truth to be grasped that he couldn't quite reach. His brain reached for that truth as he thrust into her again and again, it sought enlightment as he buried himself so deep into her that his body audibly slapped against hers and he almost disconnected his being from his body as he reached a hand round and brought her to a shuddering orgasm with a few flicks of his long fingers. Her pussy clamped around him and he poured himself into her with a proprietary moan. It was as his lust left his body, leaking away with his seed that the elusive truth came to him. This was real. Their connection was special. He needed Bella body, heart and soul.


	25. Chapter 25

Bella tried to catch her breath, still bent across the tabletop. Her legs felt like jelly and a feeling of well being spread over her like a soft golden cloud. Edward still stood behind her, his own breath coming in ragged gasps, his hands holding her waist tightly as if now that he had grasped her that he was never going to let her go again. She felt his body against her back as he released her arms from their cotton constraints then bent forward, pushing her hair to one side and planting a tender kiss on the back of her neck.

BUZZ!

The buzzing of the internal intercom sounded. It was loud as the machine was close to her head and she jumped, her and Edward both breaking into soft laughter at the realisation that it was just the pedestrian everyday noise of the office. Edward reached out his hand and pressed the reply button.

"Yes?" he said, smoothly, his voice a little husky but otherwise not betraying what they had been doing only moments before.

"Edward?" It was reception. "Is Bella there?"

"Yes Sandy, I'm here too," said Bella.

"I've got a call from the Director of Renesmee's summer camp, do you want to take it?"

"Put it through to my line," Bella answered. Edward straightened up and the loss of sensation as he slipped out of her was palpable. She hurriedly pulled the panties back on, smoothed her skirt over her thighs and sat back down at the desk. As the phone rang she vainly tried to pull the now buttonless shirt over her chest. Giving up she picked up the receiver and put it to her ear.

"Bella Cullen."

"Mrs Cullen?" came a remote voice. "It's Director Beatty at the camp. Can you talk?"

"Of course."

"I'm afraid that there's been an incident."

"Oh no," she gasped, "is Renesmee alright?" Edward looked up, his whole attention suddenly fixed on the phone call.

"I'm sorry. I didn't meant to alarm you. Renesmee is absolutely fine." The voice paused. Bella flashed a quick thumbs up to indicate to Edward that their daughter was safe. "However, there has been a minor bullying incident."

"Bullying?"

"I'm not really sure how to tell you this Mrs Cullen, however some of the kids got hold of pictures of your husband in..." The voice took a deep breath then continued, "...in a compromising position. You know how kids are, they saw it on social media and started teasing Renesmee about it. She's been quite upset. There's only a little over a week of camp left. Some might say that it's character building however if I was you I would think seriously about picking Renesmee up and taking her home."

"I'll come and get her now," said Bella, softly, bidding the camp director goodbye and putting down the phone.

"Well?" asked Edward, now fully dressed again and clearly concerned, "what was all that about?"

"Renesmee's being bullied because of the pictures of you at that strip club in the press." She kept her emotions in check, telling him facts in a monotone voice. His face fell, she almost felt sorry for him as she saw the deep pain caused by the knowledge that it was his actions that had put Renesmee in that position. However the anger welling up from deep within her soon took over.

"How could you?"

"We've been over this..." started Edward.

"Shut up," she spat, the venom in her own voice surprising her, "it's one thing when your actions hurt me but quite another when your actions cause our daughter to get bullied. You know that you're a well known figure in this area, why on earth would you put yourself in that position?"

"I told you, it was Emmett's idea..."

"Emmett, Emmett, Emmett," she mimicked his voice, the very epitome of a schoolyard bully, "it's always him, isn't it?"

"Don't say that, Emmett's been a good friend for a long time," Edward's voice was plaintive.

"Shut up," said Bella, putting on her suit jacket and buttoning all four buttons, "Emmett's been a friend for a long time, that doesn't necessarily mean that he's a good friend." She looked down, trying to rearrange her blouse to appear as if it was buttoned under the suit jacket in a normal manner. "Everything Emmett touches turns to shit, I can't believe that you haven't learned that by now." Edward looked as if he was going to reply, his mouth opening and closing but no sound coming out. "I'm going to pick up our daughter now. While I'm gone I would like you to contact Flora and see if she can do some extra shifts to look after Renesmee before school starts in a couple of weeks." He nodded his understanding. He took the keys to the Jaguar out of his pocket and dangled them, clearly a peace offering. "It's fine," she said, as she walked past him and out the door, "weather's good. I'll take the Miata."

"Hey, Bella," it was Jacob, dressed in a well fitting grey suit and standing right outside her and Edward's office. Jessica stood beside him, radiating office sex from every stitch of her tight pink dress and the seamed stockings that led down to her impossibly high shoes.

"Oh, hi Jacob," she replied, literally stepping backward into the safety of the office. "What are you doing here?"

"It's my big interview," he beamed. She was silently thankful that he appeared to be too wrapped up in the excitement of the day to notice either that something was wrong or that under the suit jacket her blouse wasn't done up, the discarded buttons still on the floor in the office beyond. "I don't scrub up so bad, right?" He grabbed his lapels and posed, admittedly handsome in a grey suit and a pristine white shirt unbuttoned at the neck for a more casual look.

"I don't know where you found him Edward," gushed Jessica, talking over Bella's shoulder to address Edward in the office beyond, "but Jacob's so photogenic, he's going to make a lovely spread in the Seattle Homes supplement."

"Do you hear that Bella?" he winked at her. "My own spread in Seattle Homes. I'm going up in the world, right?"

"That's great," said Bella, trying to be happy for him but struggling to focus on anything other than Renesmee and how quickly she could pick her up to deliver her from the bullies. "Listen, I've got to go, trouble at summer camp. I hope it goes really well." She gave him a tight smile then walked off through the open plan office and reception, pausing only to press the button to call the lift. Although she was fully dressed it felt like a walk of shame, Edward's seed was seeping out of her with the aid of gravity and movement to soak the already damp cotton panties that she had hurriedly re-assembled.

Before the lift arrived she felt, rather than saw, a Jacob shaped mass appear beside her.

"Bella, what's wrong?" She turned her head to look at him, only to find herself gazing up into liquid chocolate puppy dog eyes that were so filled with concern for her that they made ashamed. She lowered her head, pulling the car keys out of her handbag and fiddling with them to give her something to focus on.

"Renesmee's been bullied at camp, I'm going to pick her up now."

"I'm sorry." His hand was on her shoulder, warm, comforting, supportive and most important of all in that moment, platonic. "Is there anything that I can do to help?"

"No, no," she shook her head, raising it to fix him with a weak smile. "I've got it under control. You should enjoy your day."

"Are you sure?" He squeezed her shoulder slightly, the tilt of his head and the crinkling of his eyes suggesting that he knew that were was something more to her sudden departure.

"Yes," this time her smile was more genuine. The lift arrived and she stepped into it. As the doors closed she watched Jacob's face until the lift doors met and the journey downward began.

* * *

"Where's Bella gone?" asked Jessica, dropping a black coffee that he had not requested but which was genuinely welcome onto the desk in front of him.

"Thanks," said Edward, taking a sip of the hot liquid. "She's gone to pick Renesmee up from summer camp. There's been some bullying."

"Oh no, that's terrible," said Jessica, enveloping him in a cloud of her sweet perfume as she put a friendly hand on the back of her chair. "Is there anything that I can do to help?"

"No," he smiled at her, pleased that she was willing to help. "I've got it under control."

"You're such a good father," she sighed, picking up the framed photo of Renesmee that sat on his desk and inspecting it closely. "Not every man would, you know..."

"Not every man would what?" he quizzed. She put the photograph back down at the table and stood upright.

"You know..."

"Know what?" He was starting to get frustrated with Jessica now, as well as more than a little worried about what exactly she was trying to say.

"I'm sorry," said Jessica, "I thought you knew." She looked scared now, her eyes darting toward the exit.

"Knew what?"

"Emmett," she said, "the real reason that Bella and I don't talk any more..." Edward looked at her, the pieces of a far flung jigsaw suddenly locking into place in his head. Bella's irrational hatred for Emmett. Emmett not wanting Edward to marry Bella. Emmett missing the wedding. Renessmee's blonde hair and blue eyes. Her aptitude for sport. Renesmee wasn't his daughter.

"Why the fuck didn't anyone tell me?"

"I'm so sorry," she simpered, "I thought that you knew. I mean, look," she gestured at the photograph, the blonde haired blue eyed little girl, "it's obvious."

"It can't be true," he snarled, smashing a fist onto the tabletop. "Renesmee's mine. I'm in absolutely no doubt about that."

"But..."

"Get out," he said. Jessica, unusually, looked pleased to be dismissed and scurried out of the room at top speed, closing the office door behind her.

Edward had to see Emmett. He had to get to the bottom of this. But before he left he logged onto the internet and purchased a DNA testing kit, paying almost double the advertised price to have it couriered to the office the same day.


	26. Chapter 26

"Hey Ed, wotcha doing here?" Emmett stood at the door to his apartment, relaxed and sleepy in sweat pants and a wife beater, several days of stubble heavy on his chin. He put one arm on the door jamb, the other hand absent-mindedly burying into the sweat pants to scratch the contents. "Want to come in?"

"Sure," said Edward, calmly, following Emmett into the apartment and closing the door behind him.

"Beer?" said Emmett, opening the refrigerator. The contents were almost entirely liquid.

"No thanks," replied Edward, "I'm not staying." Emmett shrugged, as if to say that Edward could suit himself. He took a beer out of the refrigerator, twisted the top off and took a long gulp before closing the door and leaning back against a sparse kitchen worktop.

"Shoot," said Emmett, clasping a beer in one hand, his other hand lazily helping prop his body against the worktop. "I've known you long enough to know that you've got something on your mind. What is it?"

"How... Why...?" All of the smart and sensible and plain angry things that Edward had practising saying in the car washed away with the inevitability of words written in the sand. Each breath took comprehension and cohesion further from his thoughts, leaving only the bitter truth; that Emmett had hurt him and his family deeply. His hand shook, the gut wrenching anger gone, replaced with something rawer.

"Fuck man," he said, his face crinkling, tears that he swore that he wouldn't show Emmett welling up, "how could you?" He looked straight at Emmett.

"How do you know?" said Emmett in a low voice. Edward felt sick to the stomach. Part of him desperately hoped that Emmett would deny it and tell him that it was all a mistake, yet there was something inevitable about this conversation, as if Emmett had been expecting it for some time.

"She told me."

"Shit." Edward was sure that Emmett's hand was shaking as he raised the bottle to his lips to take another long gulp. "Sorry man."

"Sorry?" The anger that had leaked away started to spike again. Edward grabbed onto it, nurtured it, tried to make it into something more tangible than the black void of sorrow that had taken root in his very soul. "You think that sorry is going to cut it?"

"Fuck, Edward," he shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know."

"You don't know?" Edward's voice was heavy with sarcasm, incredulous at the glib response.

"I've not exactly been in this situation before," said Emmett, "I want to face up to my responsibilities but I really don't have a clue where to start."

"How about telling me?" spat Edward. "That would have been a pretty good place to start."

"Come on," said Emmett, defensively, "do you know how hard it would have been to bring that up with you?"

"Did you try? Or was it just some big joke that the pair of you laughed about behind my back?"

"Oh we never laughed," said Emmett, flippantly.

"There's a child involved here," said Edward.

"In my defence," said Emmett, "she was already pregnant when I tapped her."

"Why you..." White hot anger flared over Edward with the violence of a lightning strike. He took a step towards Emmett and punched him. The shot lacked technique, a huge windmill of a punch that Emmett would have seen coming and could have easily stopped yet his hands stayed by his side, his jaw clenching as Edward's hand connected. He didn't move the second time that Edward punched him. This time Edward's fist connected with Emmett's nose. The crunch was palpable and immediately satisfying, as was the sound of breath escaping Emmett's mouth and the blood that immediately started spurting down his face. Edward lifted his hand to punch Emmett again but his hand was so heavy he could barely lift it and Emmett obviously wasn't going to do anything to try to stop him. His knees buckled and he dropped to the floor, sprawling onto the cool tiles as the heat of his anger seeped away. He knew that he should never have resorted to violence. The momentary satisfaction quickly changed to shame.

"I love her Edward," said Emmett, softly, "always have."

"And you think that the time to confess this is now?"

"I just want it all out in the open, man." He opened a drawer and rooted in it until he found a clean soft dishtowel, balled it up and pressed it to the blood starting to drip out of his nose. "I'm in love with her." He shrugged, a sheepish smile creeping onto the corners of his mouth, "I probably have been in love with her since the first time I saw her." Edward looked up at Emmett with forlorn eyes. What on earth had he done to deserve this?

"It was so hard to see her get married to that Southern douche."

"I'm not Southern," said Edward, shaking his head, "or a douche..."

"I know," said Emmett, scrunching his face up to illustrate his own confusion. "But Jasper is."

"Jasper?" asked Edward.

"Yeah, Jasper," said Emmett, "who the fuck else would I be talking about?"

"You _tapped_ my sister?"

"Um, yeah? We've been discussing it for the last ten minutes."

"No we've not..."

"Yes we have..."

"No," said Edward firmly, "we've not. Jessica told me about you and Bella. That's why I came to confront you."

"Shit," said Emmett, the colour that had drained out of his face at their first confrontation being replaced with two spots of colour high on his cheeks, almost as red as the blood being soaked up by the dishtowel. "Jessica promised not to tell, you know, on account of Bella's mother dying."

"My wife and my sister? What sort of friend are you?"

"No, no..." Emmett shook his head vehemently. "I never... No, not Bella..."

"Then what have you and Jessica been hiding for all these years then?"

"Don't make me say it..."

"Say it," hissed Edward. "Just say it."

"Jessica saw us."

"Saw what?" Edward gritted his teeth, bracing himself for the worst.

"Shit, Eddie..."

"The truth Emmett. I want the truth."

"I was bored with Jessica. She was hot but vacuous. Your sister wouldn't give me the time of day and I was jealous of all the time that you were spending with Bella. I'm ashamed to say it but I set about splitting you up. When you wouldn't look at any of those hotties that I paraded in front of you I set my sights on Bella. I thought that if I could seduce her that I could break you up." Fresh tears welled up in Edward's eyes as he looked up at the man that he thought had been his best friend for twenty years. "Don't look at me like that Ed, I was young and stupid and jealous as hell of what you and Bella had and I've been trying to make up for it ever since."

"Make up for exactly what?"

"I tried to seduce her. I touched her at every opportunity, I tried to steal kisses. There was one day where I thought that it was going to succeed." Edward held his breath. "But afterwards I realised that it was the day her mother died, I had caught her when she was at her most vulnerable. Fuck," he said, taking the rag from his face and clasping and unclasping his fist around it, "I was a complete shithead." Edward urged him to continue with a pointed look. "She picked you, Edward. She picked you. Of course, Jessica saw me trying to pick her up and got the wrong end of the stick. She agreed to keep quiet because Renee had just passed away but she never really believed that nothing happened."

"She picked me?"

"Yes," said Emmett, clearly pleased that Edward was focusing on a positive. "She picked you. I've never seen anything as fierce as Bella, seventeen years old and hurt as hell but she already knew that you were the one. It was humbling."

"I guess you were too embarrassed to come to the wedding then?"

"Shit excuse man," he said, "but after I tried to stick my tongue down Bella's throat I just couldn't come. I still regret it. I've tried though, I really have, to be a good friend and god father to Renesmee since then."

"She's getting bullied because of the strip club pictures."

"Edward..." He could tell from Emmett's eyes that the thought that he had caused pain to Renesmee, wasn't a pleasant one "I'm really sorry, I just didn't think. You seemed so sad and when dinner and beer and dancing didn't lift your mood I resorted to the only thing that I'm comfortable with."

"Depravity?"

"Um no," he looked a little sheepish, "girls and their restorative properties for a man down in the dumps."

"I don't know what to do with you," said Edward, with a hollow little laugh. "You've told me exactly what I needed to hear about Bella but you've also admitted to seducing my sister. What do I do?"

"Punch me again?" said Emmett.

"It only made me feel better for a few seconds."

"Sort it out with Bella, man." Edward looked up at Emmett. The big man extended the hand that wasn't holding the dishtowel against his face to Edward and he took it, letting Emmett help him to his feet. "She's the only thing that matters. This business with Jacob is eating you up. Go get her and show that she means the world to you."

"I will," replied Edward, dusting himself off. His knees felt as wobbly as those of a new born calf but his heart was sustaining him with new purpose. "What you gonna do about Alice?"

"Don't know," said Emmett, shrugging his shoulders. "Up to her, I guess."

"If you really do love her, don't leave it too late to tell her that."

"Thanks bud."


	27. Chapter 27

RING.

Edward's phone vibrated in his pocket before he could get to the car. He pulled it out of his pocket and recognised the office number.

"Cullen."

"Edward, it's Kevin. Are you on the way back?"

"Um, I could be." Kevin remained silent on the line, not a good sign. "Do I need to be?"

"Please," said Kevin, punctuating the single world with a deep sigh that made Edward panic more than if the older man had been shouting and screaming down the line. He pressed the button to disconnect, put the phone back into his suit jacket and opened the car door.

* * *

RING.

The dashboard of Bella's Miata lit up with Alice's name.

"Hey Alice, what's up?"

"Hi Auntie Alice," yelled Renesmee. Bella took her eyes off the road for a moment to smile at her daughter. This was the most animated she had seen Renesmee on the hour long journey to the outskirts of Seattle. "It's Nessie! Me and Mom have got you on speaker!"

"Hey baby girl, good to hear your voice."

"Alice?" Bella was concerned by the tone of her voice. Even in a few words it sounded tense, even scared. "Are you okay?"

"Emmett's here," she whispered.

"Yay, Uncle Emmett!" yelled Renesmee.

"Emmett? I'll be there in ten minutes."

"Thanks Bella." Alice hung up.

* * *

"Renesmee," said Bella, as she pulled the Miata up in front of Alice and Jasper's house. Emmett's truck was parked there already, abandoned in a haphazard manner that made her wonder what state of mind he had been in when he had arrived or for that matter what had happened to instigate a visit. "I need you to sit in the car for a few minutes while I talk to Alice and Emmett."

"Awwww..." said Renesmee. "Wait," she said, her eyes going brighter again. "Is it secret adult talk about my birthday?"

"It might be..." replied Bella, although her gut twisted a little at the thought that she hadn't even started planning anything for Renesmee's eleventh birthday in just a few weeks.

"No problem, Mom," said Renesmee, flashing her a smile and turning the radio immediately from Bella's preferred station to some jangling kid pop that Bella usually forbade. "I'll be fine here for a little bit." Bella popped a spontaneous kiss onto the top of Renesmee's head and shut the car door firmly behind her.

The heavy wooden house door was already ajar and she debated a moment whether to knock. Raised voices from the interior of the house made up her mind for her.

"Hello!" she called, pushing the door open by a few inches. "It's Bella." The urgency or the tone of the voices didn't change. "Hello!" she called, a little louder. There was no acknowledgement so she took the initiative, pushing the door open and following the voices to the living room. The scene that she saw struck fear into her heart. Emmet had Alice by the arms, Alice had her head turned away defiantly.

"Get off of her," screamed Bella, barrelling across the soft carpet. Emmett, clearly surprised by her intrusion took a guilty step back from Alice, whereupon she sat heavily down on the sofa and burst into tears. "Are you okay?" said Bella urgently, plonking herself down beside Alice.

"No," sobbed Alice.

"What have you done to her?" yelled Bella, rising to her feet and squaring up to Emmett. Emmett's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish, his head moving robotically between Bella and Alice, clearly not sure where or how to divide his attention."You piece of shit."

"Piece of shit?" said Emmett, a tone of confusion colouring his voice. "That's a bit unfounded given that I'm here begging Alice to marry me."

"Or," said Bella, poking a finger towards his massive chest, "are you here to blackmail her into sleeping with you again?"

"Blackmail?" Emmett blinked. "Alice, what does she mean?" Alice turned her head away, not looking at either of them. Fresh tears racked her body.

"Alice told me," said Bella, through gritted teeth, "one mistake followed by making her do it time and time again."

"Making her?" His voice rose. "Alice? Is that what you told her?" Alice finally turned her head to look back at Emmett, her face already red and puffy, tears streaking down her face.

"I..." said Alice before stopping. "I..." she began again but no words came out.

"Wow," said Emmett, his voice calm and controlled but with a hint of something steelier behind it. "You are a piece of work Alice." Bella looked between the two, confused. "You made Bella think," he continued, "that I was a blackmailer or a rapist or something. When all the time I was here, begging you to break up with Jasper, offering to bring up his child as my own, putting my finances, my heart and my soul at your disposal." He laughed, a bitter noise. "I've loved you since we were teenagers and you've taken advantage of that time and time again, dangling yourself close enough to make me do whatever you want then withdrawing from me. Then, just when I think that we have got a chance..." He cleared his throat. If Bella wasn't mistaken there was a lump in it, a catch in his tone that indicated how upset he was. "It's over, Alice" he said. To Bella's surprise Alice's cries ratcheted up another notch. "You've made clear what you really think about me. It hurts like hell but at least it's drawn a line in the sand. Maybe finally I can start getting over you." He turned on his tail and walked out of the house.

"Alice?" said Bella, still a little confused as to what had actually gone on.

"You evil bitch!" cried Alice, rising to her feet with surprising nimbleness for a heavily pregnant woman. "You've ruined everything!"

"What?" said Bella, taking a step back to stay out of reach, "Me?"

"Yes, you."

"I don't understand? You told me that he had blackmailed you into sleeping with him."

"I was hurting like hell when he gave me an ultimatum, of course I was going to put some spin on things to make myself feel better. You," she spat, putting her finger within inches of Bella's chest, "should have read between the lines. In fact, you just should have kept out of it completely." Bella was starting to wish that she had stayed out of things.

* * *

"Mom," shouted Renesmee as Bella closed the front door of the house behind her. "Uncle Emmett took me on a pony ride." Renesmee was on Emmett's back, her arms flung around his neck as Emmett's huge bulk pranced around as if he was an impetuous pony.

"That's lovely," said Bella, "now why don't you get back in the car while Uncle Emmett and I have a quick chat."

"Fine," shouted Renesmee in happy resignation, clearly still believing that the adult chat related to her birthday. She bestowed a sloppy kiss onto Emmett's cheek then hugged him as he dropped her to the ground and she ran back to the Miata where the radio still blared teen pop out of the open roof.

"I'm sorry..." began Bella, running a hand through her hair in frustration, not quite sure how to begin.

"Don't," said Emmett, leaning back against the side of his truck and crossing his arms. His eyes were sad, the earlier anger seemingly gone. "I know that we've not always seen eye to eye and god knows I've apologised hundreds of times over the last decade for my stupid attempts to seduce you back then." She nodded her agreement. "But have I ever done anything to suggest that I'm a blackmailer or a rapist?" He fixed her with his blue eyes and her answer was an honest shake of the head. "I mean, you all look down at me because I'm single, a bit of a player, but honestly, I think that I'm the only one around here being truthful." Bella stayed silent, not ready or able to contradict him. "Alice and Jasper have been unhappy for ages. Moving house, building an extension, having a baby? All distractions from the fact that their marriage has been over for months. You and Edward?" Bella tensed, not sure what he was going to say. "You guys seem to be doing everything but actually talking to each other. You're both madly in love, just sort it." Bella opened her mouth to protest but he put a finger over his mouth to indicate that she should stay quiet. "No excuses, Bella, just sort it. I think that things seem better now that you're working together again. You need to hold onto this new closeness and nurture it, make sure that you have things in common beyond a house and a kid."

"Since when did you get so smart?" teased Bella in a soft voice.

"I've always been smart," said Emmett, shrugging his shoulders with a self deprecating smile that was a little closer to the fun loving guy that had been friends with her husband for so many years. "It's just usually well hidden under a veneer of cocky bastard and womanising so and so." She laughed. Emmett was an idiot but sometimes, just sometimes, he was bang on the money.

* * *

"I'm glad you're both back," said Kevin. As soon as Bella had arrived back at the office the operations manager had shepherded her into a conference room where Edward was already waiting. He launched into the reason for the meeting without preamble.

"They've found some artefacts on the factory site."

"Artefacts?" said Edward. Bella couldn't help but notice that he looked rumpled, not quite as put together as his normal self. "What sort of artefacts?"

"The claim," said Kevin, throwing a copy of the local newspaper down in front of them, "is that the three objects that have allegedly been found are ten thousand year old tools."

"That's absurd," said Edward. "There would have been a standard archaeological survey done when the first plant was put up there? How could have they have found something now?"

"I know they found a historic camp in Redmond recently," said Bella, recalling an in depth article, "but that's miles away from Greenburgh."

"You're absolutely right," said Kevin, "and to date there has never been any suggestion that Greenburgh as a whole has any historical significance. In fact, the first known settlement was late nineteenth century."

"So how did the objects get there?" Edward drummed his fingers impatiently on the table top.

"I don't know," said Kevin, "personally, I think that they might have been planted but there is no way of proving it."

"How long to get this misunderstanding ironed out and get back on the job?"

"I think how much is more the question," said Kevin. "We're going to have to commission a full archaeological survey plus pay the builder a retainer to stay available to start as soon as the survey is finished. Assuming," he added, with a tight and nervous smile, "that nothing is found."

"That's ridiculous!" said Bella.

"I agree," said Kevin, "but the Greenburgh Mayors office have really got the bit between their teeth on this one. All they can see is the benefits to tourism in the town if it is discovered that there are ten thousand year old settlements in the area."

"How much?" said Edward, his voice cold.

"Four hundred thousand dollars," said Kevin. "Might be less if we can discount the settlement angle and get back on site quickly but realistically we need four hundred."

Edward looked at Bella and she right back at him. The last of the cash reserves of the company had been used. Their house had been mortgaged to the hilt to absorb the impact of the insolvency of the first contractor. There was no money to be found, especially not a sum in the magnitude of four hundred thousand dollars.

"Edward!" The door opened and Jessica burst in, phone in hand.

"Not now," said Edward with a dismissive wave of the hand, "we're busy."

"No, you have to come quick," she panted, "it's your parents, there's been an accident."


	28. Chapter 28

"Carlisle's dead, isn't he?" Esme asked as she lay on the hospital bed, drip in one hand attached to a flashing, beeping machine. The impact of the airbag had fractured one of the fine bones around her eye socket and it was red and heavily swollen already, however the real trauma had been the collapsed lung caused by a fractured rib that had seen Esme rushed into surgery immediately upon arrival to the hospital. Bella turned toward Edward, expecting him to break the news yet he didn't speak. In fact he had barely uttered a word over the last few hours as they anxiously waited for Esme to come out of surgery. His face was ashen, his eyes vacant.

"I'm afraid so," said Bella as gently as she could. Esme's eyes closed and a flash of grief moved across her face as visibly as clouds covering the sun. "I'm so sorry."

"What happened?" asked Esme. Again, Bella looked at Edward but he continued to stare into space.

"It was a massive stroke," said Bella. "The doctor said that it couldn't have been predicted."

"The other car?" Esme closed her eyes, clearly expecting the worst of news.

"She walked away with whiplash and a bit of bruising from the airbag but generally fine." A small flicker of relief rolled across the older woman's face.

"Bella?" Esme opened her eyes again after a few moments. "Could I possibly ask you to collect a few things for me from home?" Bella's eyes bulged. She and Esme had barely spoken a dozen words since the wedding, now she was asking for a favour? "Highly irregular, I know," said Esme, with a hollow little laugh that died as soon as it had started due to the pain in her chest, "but I don't have anybody else to ask and my son doesn't look like he's up to the task."

"Not a problem," said Bella, taking out her mobile to quickly jot down what Esme neeeded. The list stretched to a surprisingly wide array of prescription medication, a supply of pyjamas and some toiletries. Edward was sitting down now, looking past rather than at his mother. Bella decided to leave him at the hospital and run the errand by herself.

* * *

Bella hadn't been in the house since her and Edward were teenagers, before she got pregnant. The kitchen and the hallway had been remodelled since last time she was there but the smell of the house was the same; dark wood, orange oil and old money. The same mahogany antique clock stood watch over the hallway, tutting rhythmically as Bella snuck past. Esme might have asked her to do this but Bella still felt like a trespasser. She planned to get in and out of there as quickly as possible.

The master bedroom was a light, bright room, even with the mahogany sleigh bed and matching wardrobes that dominated the space. The windows were tight closed and the room a little stuffy. There was a slight musk in the air, the scent of sleep. It made Bella sad. Carlisle and Esme had woken up as normal under that cream damask bedspread, unaware that today would be the last day that they would ever wake up together. Bella had been strong at the hospital but now tears prickled her eyes. Her and Esme might not have seen eye to eye but she could empathise with her position. How would she feel if it was Edward? Suddenly her vision started to swim a little and her legs went a little wobbly. It wasn't from lack of food, although she hadn't eaten a thing for nearly twelve hours. It was the thought that if something happened to Edward that the last time that they would have spent together would have been time spent fighting. She sat down heavily on a high backed wooden chair. With all of the rubbish stripped away the position was remarkably simple. She loved Edward. Edward loved her. They had to overcome their problems to make the most of every day that they had left together.

With a small overnight bag quickly packed with essentials Bella was happy to leave the bedroom and close the door behind her. The prescription medicines were kept in a drawer in the kitchen so she scurried downstairs and started searching for them. She opened each drawer methodically looking for the cache of pills. Drawer after drawer of cooking utensils, cutlery and tableware. One drawer was simply full of paperwork and she closed it as quickly as she had opened it. Yet something caught her eye and she found herself opening it again. It could have been anybody, the blonde locks on the corner of a photograph, but she was a mother and something about that photograph spoke to her. She grabbed the corner and pulled it from the pile. It was Renesmee with a little palomino pony, a photograph that had been published in the Greenburgh examiner in conjunction with a family fun day at Cullen Industries last summer. There was another photograph behind it, from the same day, Edward standing at a microphone in front of the crowd declaring the fun day open. She pulled out the whole pile. There was a picture of her and Edward on their wedding day, their pale but happy faces as they left the town hall. There was a newspaper clipping of the announcement of Renesmee's birth. A clipping of Edward's profile and interview that had appeard in the local Chamber of Commerce quarterly magazine and several of Renesmee's class photographs.

Bella couldn't understand what she was seeing. If Carlisle and Esme had cut Edward off why were they keeping tabs on him and his family from afar? If they were interested in their grand-daughter why didn't they just swallow their pride and ask to be part of her life? Surely it wasn't pride that had kept them away for the past ten years? There was an important lesson here, Bella was sure of that but the concept was so large, vast and intangible that her brain couldn't quite grasp it. It was like a slippery pig that wriggled out of her grasp as soon as she thought she had it under control.

Giving up she stuffed the photographs and clippings back into the drawer, not caring whether Esme would be able to tell that the documents had been disturbed. She quickly located the medicine drawer and moved all of the bottles with Esme's name on it into the overnight bag. Bella didn't know the names of all of these medicines but the volume was worrying. Her head was starting to throb from dehydration and stress so, finding a bottle of regular Tylenol in the back of the drawer she twisted it open and chucked a couple into her palm. She found a glass and filled it with water then swallowed the pills. Her first instinct was to clean the glass and put it away but instead she left it half full on the draining board. Instead of scurrying in and out of the house she suddenly felt the need for Esme to know that she had been there, a primal urge to mark her place in another woman's territory. Despite her sudden turn of bravery she still breathed a sigh of relief when she was on the doorstep in the fresh air again, turning the key in the lock.

* * *

RING.

It was Jacob's number that flashed up on the hands free display. She pressed the button on the steering wheel that would cut the call off. After a few moments the noise of a voicemail message chirped. She drove for a few moments ignoring it, not quite sure whether to listen to it or not. Finally curiousity took over and she pressed the shortcut that would take her to messages.

"Hey Bella, it's Jacob. I guess that you're still busy with Renesmee and I hope that everything is alright. If there's anything that I can do..." A lump formed in Bella's throat. He was such a good guy. How was she going to let him down gently? "Anyways, I guess that you'll be a little busier with Renesmee home so I'll wait for you to come back to me. Um, my workshop is in the East Industrial zone and my crash pad's above. I'm doing a few small pieces now before starting the next renovation in a couple of weeks so feel free to pop around any time if you want to. Chances are I won't be far." She pressed the button to disconnect the call.

* * *

"There we go," said Bella, the last of Esme's overnight bag safely packed into the hospital drawers and the medication stacked up neatly on the dresser beside the flowers and magazines that Bella had picked up on the way back. "All done." She stashed the bag itself in a cupboard.

"He's not moved you know," said Esme. She cocked her head to where Edward was sitting in the corner, staring into space.

"Really?" said Bella, her face creasing in concern. "But I was gone for nearly two hours."

"He's not said a word," whispered Esme. "I think there's something wrong with him."

"I'm sure he's fine," said Bella. She spoke in her normal voice, refusing to be drawn into a hushed conversation with Esme with Edward only metres away. Edward didn't turn his head towards her voice, just continued staring. He wasn't even looking out of the window, just staring into space.

"I think I'd better get him home," said Bella. "We'll come back tomorrow."

* * *

Bella woke with a start. She fumbled on the bedside table for her phone and when it flicked into life, the harsh blue light hurting her sleepy eyes, the time was 0500. There was noise downstairs and she wasn't quite sure what it was. She heard a laugh that sounded like Edward and frowned. He shouldn't be up at this time. It was nearly midnight when they had got home. Edward had looked exhausted and had barely uttered a syllable. She had put it down to shock and hoped that a good nights sleep would bring him out of his shell. What the hell was he doing up now?

She got out of bed, slipped her feet into slippers and pulled a dressing gown on over her nightdress. The sound of activity from the kitchen increased as she got closer but there was an odd note to it, something erratic that tightened her stomach and made her fear for what she would see. The door was ajar and taking a deep breath she pushed it open wide.

Edward was the epicentre of a whirl of activity. Both of his laptops were open on the kitchen table, surrounded by a disorderly array of papers. On the counter top the food mixer whirred, the noise that had woken her up, it was on top speed but the mixture had long since come together, a ball of beige stuff clinging to the spinning rotors as they continued around and around. Mixing bowls, cooking utensils and dirty bowls scattered every surface that she could see. There was already something in the oven, its silhouette so high that it looked as if it would touch the roof any second. A slight smell of burning and sweet cinnamon lingered in the air.

"What are you doing?" said Bella.

Edward turned around to face her, clad only in tight white boxer shorts, his face adorned with a look that she did not recognise. His face was still pale and his hair was messy, flour and something stickier adhering to different sections. His eyes were unrecognisable, glazed manic pits of unnatural brightness.

"I'm making Renesmee a birthday cake!" His eyes flitted to the table, jerky as a lizard. "I'm saving the business too." His eye flicked to the second laptop. "I'm choosing the internal specifications for the new factory." His eyes flicked back to Bella, some of the mania seeping from them. "I'm doing everything." He blinked, once, twice, three times. The glaze in his eyes suggested tears now. "I'm doing everything, Bella." With a messy spatula still in hand he sank to his knees. He clutched the utensil tight as he lay down on the cold tiled floor and curled up in the foetal position. "I'm doing everything."


	29. Chapter 29

"Come on Renesmee," said Bella, stacking her own empty cereal bowl in the dishwasher and gulping down the last of her coffee. "Your grandad will be here any minute so you need to have that oatmeal finished." Renesmee put her spoon down in the bowl with a clatter of stainless steel against china that set Bella's teeth on edge. The hot oats had barely been touched.

"What's wrong with daddy?" she asked, fixing Bella with scared little eyes that made her heart expand almost painfully in her chest. "He didn't get out of bed for two days," continued Renesmee. "Then when he did get out of bed he didn't want to play or anything. He just stared at the same channel on the television all night."

"Well," said Bella, sitting down beside her daughter at the table. "You know that daddy has been under a lot of pressure at work, don't you?" Renesmee nodded, her bottom lip slightly petted. "And his mommy is ill and his daddy passed away."

"He didn't even talk to them," burst out Renesmee, "so why is he so sad?"

"They might not have talked," said Bella gently. "But that doesn't mean that your daddy didn't care about them." Renesmee nodded but Bella couldn't be sure whether she was nodding because she thought it was expected or whether she could really empathise with the grown up issues. Nevertheless she continued. "Daddy is in shock. The doctor said that his brain has taken a little holiday to protect itself from all of the horrible things that are happening. He needs time to rest and for his brain to process things at their own pace." She didn't mention the huge dose of anti-depressants that the doctor had prescribed.

"How long will it take?" said Renesmee, frowning.

"I don't know, honey," said Bella, tucking a stray lock of unruly blonde hair behind Renesmee's ear. "Everybody is different."

"So why do I have to go away?" whined Renesemee. "I've already been at camp."

"I need to go to work," replied Bella. "Your daddy is tired and won't be able to play with you or make things or watch your favourite programmes so grandad said that you could stay with him for a few days. He'll take you to the park and fishing and maybe even horseback riding. You'll have a great time."

Renesmee pushed her oatmeal away and folded her arms. Bella realised again that despite how old her daughter looked and acted at times that she was still a little girl.

"As soon as daddy is feeling better we'll go away for a family holiday, just the three of us."

"Promise?" said Renesmee, her eyes filled with hope.

"Promise."

* * *

"Morning, Bella," said Sandy. "How's Edward?"

"Has everybody heard?"

"About the car crash? Yes." Sandy nodded. "It was in the Greenburgh Examiner and the Seattle Star over the weekend."

"Shoot," frowned Bella, "I had hoped it would stay a quiet, family affair."

"Not likely in this area," said Sandy with a grimace. "Will Edward be coming in?"

"No," said Bella, "he's taking the week off to deal with things. Please forward any mail and calls directly to me in his absence."

"Okay," said Sandy, bending over so that her head was hidden and rummaging under the desk. "A parcel arrived for him on Friday. It came express so I thought it must be important but obviously after the news he left in too much of a hurry to pick it up."

"Thanks," said Bella, accepting the nondescript parcel and tucking it under one arm before swiping her pass across small security box and walking into the office.

* * *

"Seattle Jaguar, how can I help?"

"Could I speak to Greg please?"

"Who may I say is calling?"

"Mrs Cullen."

"One moment." Bella stayed on hold for a moment before a bright voice picked up.

"Mrs Cullen, how can I help?"

"Greg, do you perhaps recall selling my husband Edward a top of the line Jaguar last year?"

"I sell a lot of cars," chuckled the voice, "although with the name Cullen and the custom paint I do recall that particular model."

"I need to sell it."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Is everything alright with it?"

"Fine," said Bella, "I just need to raise some cash for a business deal at relatively short notice. Can you sell it?"

"Hmmmm," said Greg, "I could put it on the forecourt and sell it for you and take a cut of the profit. That would maximise the return."

"How long?"

"Days, weeks, months? I really don't know Mrs Cullen because it's quite a specific model."

"What about making me a cash offer right now?"

"I could," said Greg cautiously, "but you know how it works. If I have to take on the risk of selling it then the price I give you will be much lower than the price I will eventually get."

"Try me," said Bella dryly, "you already know I need the cash now."

"Forty five thousand," said Greg, quickly.

"You'll sell it for seventy thousand," countered Bella. The adrenaline started coursing though her veins, the thrill of the negotiation, the smell of success elusively close.

"After I have it on my forecourt for weeks, months, maybe years," said Greg.

"What about sixty?"

"Sixty?" Greg sounded incensed. "There's barely anything in it for me then. What about fifty?"

"Greg," said Bella, putting on a weary voice. "We both know that you would love to have this model on your forecourt. Do me a favour and just split the difference and agree on fifty five thousand right now and I'll have the car with you tomorrow." The phone went silent yet Bella knew that he was still there, pondering her offer. Instinct told her that silence was the best policy. Sure enough, after a few minutes his voice came across the line.

"Fine," he said, "fifty five it is."

Bella put the phone down, her heart still pounding the blood around her body. She had raised quarter of the four hundred thousand that the company needed this morning by cashing in a savings policy that was supposed to be her retirement fund and selling Edward's car. There was a long way to go but she had ideas. There were more cars to sell, some artwork, maybe even some of her jewellery. There just had to be a way to keep the company afloat if she tried hard enough.

She slumped back in the leather chair, ready for her lunch, when the brown box that was Edward's parcel caught her eye again. It had stickers plastered all over it confirming that the parcel was for same day delivery, the contents urgent. Bella picked the parcel up and shook it. It was feather light but wrapped up extremely tightly in several layers of clear packing tape. She took a pair of scissors out from her top drawer and carefully slit the packing tape until the box popped open.

* * *

"You wanted to see me?"

"I did," said Bella, closing the lid of her laptop, "come in and take a seat Jessica."

"I was so sorry to hear about Edward's father," gushed Jessica as she teetered across the room in her patent high heels, each step tiny due to the tightness of her pencil skirt. "If there's anything that I can do to help, anything at all..."

"Thank you Jessica," said Bella, "it means a lot to both of us to have your support at this difficult time." Jessica preened, fluffing her hair and smoothing the tight material of her skirt over her thighs in a show of affected modesty.

"Oh it's nothing," she trilled. "I do what I can."

"Which is why," said Bella, "I'm so sorry that we're going to have to let you go."

"What?" The affectation slid away immediately.

"I'm sorry," said Bella, twisting her face into a shape that she hoped stayed more on the empathic than gleeful side of the spectrum. "The company is struggling and we have to make some economies."

"You can't economise on me," spat Jessica.

"I'm afraid we can," said Bella, pushing a box of tissues across the desk to her. "I understand that you might be upset right now."

"Upset?" said Jessica, coldly. She batted the tissue box off the desk and onto the floor with the back of her hand, never taking her eyes from Bella. "I'm fucking livid."

"People react to bad news in different ways," replied Bella, deliberately saccharine.

"You can't sack me," said Jessica, leaning forward on the edge of her seat. "You've got no grounds."

"Oh, I'm not sacking you," said Bella, "you're being made redundant and you will be paid in lieu of notice."

"I thought we were friends," said Jessica with a snarl.

"I'm not sure we've ever really been friends," said Bella coolly.

"You wouldn't have had any friends in Forks if I hadn't taken pity on the new girl."

"I would have got on just fine without you."

"You thought you were all that just because Tyler and Mike spent the first few weeks fighting over you."

"That was ten years ago, Jessica, nothing that happened then has any bearing on the present."

"You were a self obsessed cow back then and you're still the same now."

"Enough!" snapped Bella. She took a couple of deep breaths and tried to bring her voice back down to a normal level. "Get your stuff and go."

"You don't know who you're dealing with," said Jessica with a twisted smile. "I've got more than enough on you to claim for unfair dismissal."

"I thought you might," said Bella gently. "That's why I had Kim from IT take a look at your e-mail and phone records." Jessica blanched. "Given the regular contact that you've had with the Greenburgh Examiner I'd say you should thank me for giving you the option of redundancy rather than marching you off the premises and pursuing a civil case against you."

"Fine," said Jessica after a few moments silence. "But if I'm leaving here today I'm leaving under my own steam." She drew herself up tall in the chair, raising her chin defiantly. "I quit."

"Jessica," said Bella, knitting her brows together in confusion. "My offer to pay you statutory redundancy still stands."

"I'm not taking your charity," growled Jessica. "I leave here on my terms and those terms are that I quit, right now." She got to her feet, looking down at Bella. "But mark my words, you will regret this moment."

"I doubt it," said Bella, with a deliberate shake of her head. "I really, really doubt it."

Jessica turned her back on Bella and took a few tentative steps toward the door. She stopped for a moment and paused, looking directly into the wastepaper bin. She glanced back at Bella and Bella smiled at Jessica as sweetly as she could manage. A strange look passed over Jessica's face. Fear, disappointment and a touch of longing. In an instant Jessica recovered from the momentary wobble and finished her path to the door.


	30. Chapter 30

As soon as the door swung shut Bella's tough facade slipped like an ice cream cone melting in the sun. Her hands started to shake and her stomach quivered. Her mouth felt dry yet gulping down the half full glass of water on the desk didn't make her feel any better. When she got to her feet her legs were a little wobbly but if felt good to move. She went to the wastepaper bin, picked out the DNA test and put it into one plastic bag. She tied the top firmly then put it into a second plastic bag so that the contents were entirely obscured and then she put the tightly wrapped package back into the bin, putting some paperwork and an empty bottle on top of it for good measure. The last thing she needed was the staff or even the cleaners gossiping about the contents of the Cullen's bin.

Walking across the room to gaze out of the floor to ceiling window Bella still couldn't quite believe that Jessica had held a grudge against her for so many years. It had been the day of her mother's funeral when Jessica dragged her outside and accused her of sleeping with Emmett. Bella, despite her grief, insisted that nothing was going on but was too soft hearted to hurt Jessica's feelings by telling her that Emmett had made a pass at her. So she stuck with straight out denial. Their conversation had ended with Jessica stalking off. If Bella was honest they had barely spoken after that but with the stress of the funeral, Charlie falling apart and then finding out that she was pregnant, patching things up with Jessica didn't feel like a priority. Maybe she should have tried harder but before then her and Jessica had already been growing apart. She knew that Emmett wouldn't have admitted to anything. It seemed that Jessica had interpreted their denial that anything had happened between them as a cover up. She must have been whispering poison into Edward's ear to drive him to the stage of buying a DNA test to check whether Renesmee was really his daughter. She needed Jessica to know that she knew. She needed to know that she knew but that she blamed Jessica rather than Edward. She hoped that the mission had been accomplished.

Bella put her forearm above her head and against the window, leaning forward until her nose was almost touching the glass. The people on the streets below were like ants, scurrying around the city blocks. She wondered idly whether things would be easier if the window wasn't there. She would fall. She would fall away from her responsibilities, away from the horror of her mistakes and into blessed silent oblivion. She pressed her cheek against the glass, nuzzling her nose into the crook of her arm. The cold glass cooled and soothed her face but not the turmoil in her head. When things got hard she always looked into herself rather than out. The urge to harm swept through her vein like a restless beast, a pressure building, seeking a way to exit her body. Pushing herself up straight again she turned from the window and back into the room. She picked up her handbag and rummaged around inside for lipstick and powder. After retouching her face she picked up the handbag, squared her shoulders and walked out of the quiet of the office and towards her next challenge.

* * *

"Mike Newton please."

"Sorry," said the receptionist, a hipster with a dark beard and a thin knitted tie. He gave her a look that indicated that he was anything but sorry. "Mr Newton is not taking appointments today."

"He'll see me," said Bella softly. The receptionist lifted his head and cocked it to one side. "Tell him Bella Swan is here."

"Oh, I very much..."

"Tell him," interrupted Bella firmly. "That Bella Swan is here." Something about her voice made him stop and take a second look at her. He picked up an internal phone and muttered into the handset, glancing up and down at her a couple of times as he announced her presence in hushed tones.

"Please go through," said the hipster without a hint of a smile. "Mr Newton's office is at the end of the corridor."

Mike's office was small, much smaller than hers. She guessed that whilst being the editor of the Greenburgh Examiner might make him big news in Greenburgh that it wouldn't pay as well as a similar role in the city. The heating was cranked up high and the unpleasant smell of a greasy lunch lingered in the air. Mike appeared to be on the phone. He had his back to her, looking out of the tiny window. When she came in he waved a hand at her to sit down at his desk and carried on with the telephone call. Part of Bella bristled at his rudeness, fighting the urge to rip that phone out of his hand and make him speak to her. But the rational part of her brain that had planned this encounter reasoned that a few moments wouldn't make any difference. She sat down in the slightly hard chair, set her handbag demurely on her knee and surveyed his office. It was dingy, small and cluttered. The desk was criss crossed with coffee rings, melding together into a mesmerising pattern that disappeared under piles of magazines and opened and unopened mail.

Shuddering imperceptibly at the dirt and chaos she raised her head from the desk and surveyed Mike who stood in three quarters profile. He had put on weight since last time that she had seen him and his polyester trousers were cheap. Yet as he clicked end on the call and sat down in the seat opposite her she noted that the eyes were the same, shrewd blue and set in a surprisingly youthful face.

"Bella Swan," he said, sinking back in his chair and not making the effort to shake her hand. "Or, should I say Bella Cullen." Bella smiled sweetly back at him although her teeth were gritted. "What brings you from the bright lights of Seattle to my humble little backwater paper."

"Business," replied Bella, simply. Her palms felt a little sweaty, a combination of heat and nervousness but she forced herself to sit still, to stay in the moment.

"What sort of business?" said Mike. "You're not looking for a job are you?"

"No."

"Are you sure?" Mike looked at her, leaning forward in his chair, a smug grin on his face, clearly desperate for her to take the bait. "With the way that Cullen Industries is going you might be knocking on my door for a job soon." He sat back in the chair again, clearly satisfied that he had managed to drop a bomb into the conversation.

"Oh, I doubt that." Bella opened the clasp on her bag and took out a manila folder, dropping it theatrically onto the desk. "In fact, it might be you that's looking for a new job soon."

"And why is that?" said Mike, smiling.

"Because of what you and Jessica did with the Greenburgh site."

"Oh yeah?" Mike's face was still curled into a grin but the mirth in his eyes was replaced with a hint of wariness. Her heart rate rose and she imagined herself a shark, circling Mike after the very first cut. She had to be careful not to spook him, to make sure that he stayed playing in the water until she grabbed him. "And what is it that you think we did?"

"Oh Mike," she forced herself to laugh, "I do hope that's not your poker face because I can see from here that you are absolutely terrified."

"Am not," he snapped.

"I'll get to the point," said Bella, brusquely. "I sacked Jessica today." Mike paled, not bothering to pretend to smile any more. "I've got enough from her laptop and emails to connect you both with a number of leaked stories and with the planting of fake archealogical evidence at the Greenburgh factory site." He gulped, shifting from one butt cheek to another, literally squirming in her cool gaze. "At best," she continued, "you'll get the sack. At worst..." She let the silence tail out. "Well, let's just say that my legal team are looking very carefully at this evidence to see if we can bring a civil suit against you and Jessica for the additional costs incurred by the company due to your actions."

"How...?" He seemed to be struggling to get the question out.

"Four hundred thousand dollars." She let silence fill the room. She let him squirm. She watched the array of motions passing over his face. Denial, anger, fear and finally acceptance.

"It was her idea," he whined.

"Of course it was." Bella tapped her fingernails on the manila folder. "You've had it in for Cullen Industries since the very beginning with your false stories and your venomous editorials. Why would I think that Jessica was behind it any more than you?"

"We just wanted to slow things down," he stammered, "we didn't think that it would cost so much to rectify once they didn't find any more evidence."

"I don't understand." Bella shook her head. "Why would you and Jessica want to do that?"

"Jessica still holds a grudge about Emmett," said Mike, clearly happy to shift the focus to his accomplice.

"But what about you?"

"You humiliated me that night when you came as my date but left with Edward," he said in a quiet voice, picking up the mobile phone again and turning it over again and again in his hands.

"That dance was years ago," said Bella. "Surely it's not still about that?"

"It's about my brother too," said Mike, a little more forecfully. "When Volturi, your first company, folded he was one of the main creditors. He lost so much money because of you two that he had to sell his house and move his wife and kids into a one bedroom flat above a dry cleaners."

"I am sorry what happened to Volturi," said Bella. "I'm sorry about what happened to your brother. But business is risky, everybody who sets up for themselves knows that. If businesses that aren't working can't fold then there would be no entrepreneurial culture in this country."

"What do you want?" Mike seemed to have gathered himself. His voice was hard, his arms crossed defensively across his chest.

"What makes you think I want anything?"

"You're here," said Mike. "If you were going to sue you would have sent your lawyers rather than getting your pretty little hands dirty coming to Greenburgh yourself." Bella smiled. "Come on then," he snapped, "spit it out."

"I want you to admit what you did planting the evidence on site."

"Fine."

"I want you to retract the latest smear piece that you did on Cullen Industries and print a formal apology."

"Done." This time his response was tinged with a heavy sigh.

"And last, but certainly not least, I want you to report positively on Cullen Industries in future."

"But," he began, "what about impartiality..." Bella shot him a dirty look and he stopped mid sentence, clearly remembering some of the stinging editorials and implied issues that he had printed about the company in the past.

"I'm not asking you to print anything false," she said, evenly. "I just want to be sure that if you print anything about Cullen Industries that it is at least truthful. Plus, I don't want any more damaging opinion pieces or editorials."

"Okay," he nodded. "But I want one thing." She looked at him expectantly. "I want to keep the evidence."

"I thought you might," said Bella, pushing the file across the table to him. Mike opened it and flicked through, surprise registering on his face.

"These pages are blank." He flicked through the sheaf of papers again, as if not quite sure what his eyes were telling him. He raised his eyes to meet Bella's again and she fought the urge to grin maniacally.

"You're absolutely correct." He shut the folder and visibly wilted. "Jessica," she continued, "was way too clever to leave any evidence on company systems. You, on the other hand, have confessed in the face of a file of blank paper."

"You bitch," he muttered.

"Oh Mike," she said, standing up and leaning across the desk to pat the back of his hand, "that's no way to talk to your new best friend."


	31. Chapter 31

Edward stared at the television. The infomercial blared on and on, selling a machine promising six pack abs for just eight minutes a day. He had seen it three times already today, watching the impossibly toned models, listening to the over the top hype and the today's special value offer but picking up the remote control and changing the channel just seemed like too much trouble. Bella had left him in the living room this morning with everything he might need in easy reach. He had drunk the bottled water and taken his tablets but although his stomach had started rumbling well before twilight fell he couldn't bring himself to go to the kitchen and fix something.

He sighed and changed position, a strange mix of restless energy and lethargy that left him virtually paralysed. He watched the driveway, eyes flitting between the bright flashing images of the screen and the word outside the window. His brain seemed to be working at two different speeds. Part of it was working at top speed, playing over the events of the last few weeks, months and years over and over again, his life flashing before his eyes. He had barely slept the last few nights, constantly tortured by the relaying images and the regrets that came along with it. The other part of his brain, the part that dealt with everyday functions felt slow and lethargic. Simple tasks felt like mountain climbing. Even getting dressed this morning had been a monumental effort.

The infomercial changed, switching to some leggings that promised to flatter and flatten. He changed position and glanced again at the driveway, anxious for Bella to come home but dreading it at the same time.

* * *

"Do you not have a home to go to?"

"Hey, Sandy," said Bella, raising her head from the laptop to see the receptionist standing at her open office door.

"You're the last one here." She walked into the room, sitting down in the chair opposite Bella. "Again," she added pointedly.

"Thanks for noticing," said Bella, sitting back in her chair and massaging the bridge of her nose.

"Of course I noticed," said Sandy. "So has everybody else. You're not alone you know."

"I appreciate the sentiment," said Bella. "However, there's stuff going on that's up to me to fix."

"A problem shared is a problem halved."

"True," said Bella with a laugh. It was nice to have human company, to have somebody looking out for her. Something about the older woman's face, the concern in her crinkled eyes, weakened Bella's resolve.

"It's the Greenburgh factory," said Bella with a sigh. "Mike Newton told the town council that he planted the historical artefacts."

"That's good news, right?"

"Wrong," said Bella. "They think that Cullen Industries have bribed him to say that so the archealogical survey still has to go ahead."

"Shit."

"Sandy!" Bella raised her eyebrows. "I've never heard you swear before."

"Well," said Sandy with a wry smile, "this is one messed up situation so I think it warrants a cuss word." She looked intently at Bella. "Have you managed to raise the money?"

"How did you...?" She cut herself off. Sandy somehow always knew everything that was going on. "Not quite." Her eyes started filling with tears. "Oh Sandy, I've already re-mortgaged the house, cashed in my savings and sold cars, paintings and jewellery but I'm still short."

"By how much?"

"Around one hundred thousand."

"Shit." Sandy leaned back in the chair this time, pressing her lips into a thin line as the truth of the situation sunk in. "Look here," she said in a softer voice after a few moments had passed. "Life has a way of making things work out." She stretched her hand across the table and put it across Bella's for a brief, warm and comforting moment.

"Thanks," said Bella. She managed a watery smile but as Sandy left the office her tears morphed into hot angry rivulets, her shoulders shaking as she cried silently.

* * *

"Hey," said Bella.

"Hey," replied Edward, not moving his head away from the television screen. "Owww," he moaned, theatrically, as she turned on the overhead light. "That hurt."

"You don't need to sit in the dark," she said brightly. "Have you had anything to eat today?"

"No."

"Well," she replied, her voice still unnaturally bright. "Would you like me to fix you something?"

"I guess so," he shrugged, not looking at her.

"Is mac and cheese okay?"

"Fine." She observed him for a moment, her gaze as heavy and uncomfortable on his body as a scratchy wool blanket. He wanted to tell her he loved her and hold her close. Yet deep down he knew that he didn't deserve her and that she would be better off without him although he still hadn't worked out how he would tell her that. Finally she moved, switching off the overhead light and turning on a lamp that suffused the room with a soft, warm glow. As she left the room and started bustling around the kitchen he remained torn. Part of him wanted to shout and scream, to fight for her and pull him back to him. The other part wanted her to go and leave him alone to wallow in his grief, a television purgatory populated by women that were too thin and excited moustached men.

"There you go," said Bella, "mac and cheese." She deposited the plate of steaming pasta in front of him.

"Oh." He said.

"Oh?" She cocked her head, questioning his strange response.

"It's the mac and cheese out of the box, isn't it?"

"Of course it is," said Bella.

"Mom used to make it with butter and real cheese." His voice sounded plaintive, even to his own ears, but he couldn't stop. "She baked it in the oven until the top was all crispy and it was gooey underneath."

"That's a nice memory," said Bella softly, "but I don't have either the ingredients or the time to do that for you today." She put a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe another time." He didn't acknowledge her hand, just turned his attention back towards the latest infomercial and started shovelling the mac and cheese into his mouth. "I'll be back later," she said. "I need to check on your mother."

"Why?" said Edward, pausing his relentless shovelling for a moment. "She's been nothing but nasty to you over the last ten years."

"Because," said Bella with a shrug. "She needs me." She picked up her bag and left without saying goodbye. The words stung Edward harder than any barb that could have been pointed directly at him. He was useless. Pathetic. The only reason Bella was sticking around was because he needed her. Hot selfish tears stung his eyes and he wiped them away angrily with a grubby shirt sleeve. He hated being like this. He had to get better as soon as possible so that Bella wouldn't have to be saddled with him any longer. He remembered that the doctor who had prescribed him his anti depressants had given him a business card for a colleague that specialised in counselling. He got up from the couch and climbed the stairs to the bedroom, scrabbling around on his bedside table until he found the heavy cream card. He picked up the phone on the bedside table and dialed the number. It was only as the ring tone reverberated down the line to his ear that he realised he had moved without thinking, the first time that he had moved further than the bathroom without great effort in the last few days. Before he could ruminate too much on what that meant an efficient reception voice answered his call.

* * *

"Esme?" Bella let herself into the house, courtesy of the key that Esme had given her two nights ago.

"In here," came the other woman's voice. Bella followed the voice to the den where Esme sat on the sofa, her back propped up with cushions and a yellow crochet blanket draper over her knees. Bella was surprised how frail Esme suddenly looked.

"You've eaten?" said Bella, nodding her head towards the empty bowl and glass sat on the side table.

"Well," replied Esme with a dismissive wave of the hand, "I heated up some soup in the microwave."

"I'm glad to see you up and about."

"Oh," she trilled gaily, "better to be up and about than lounging around feeling sorry for myself."

"You've just lost your husband," said Bella quietly, perching on the other end of the sofa. They both turned their heads in unison, involuntarily, to look at Carlisle's recliner. Brown leather virtually moulded to the shape of his body. The TV guide was still sprawled on the floor beneath, last weeks edition. A potent reminder of the man shaped hole left in Esme's life. "No one would blame you if you did lounge around feeling sorry for yourself."

"I've spent too much of my life feeling sorry for myself," said Esme, a tilt to her chin that Bella recognised as one of Edward's gestures. She saw Esme so rarely that she forgot how alike they were. "I hated you for being the whore who stole my Edward and drove you both away. I put so much pressure on Alice to be the perfect daughter that she only visits on holidays and birthdays. I've spent so many years hating the world that I've missed out on so much."

"I saw the pictures," said Bella.

"How...?" Esme didn't bother asking which ones she meant.

"Oh, I wasn't snooping," said Bella apologetically. Yet as soon as she heard the words she wanted them back in because they sounded like the terrified seventeen year old Bella. "You just told me your medicines were in a kitchen drawer. I had to check them all."

"Oh well," said Esme, "maybe for the best." Tears shone in her eyes. "It was the only way I could keep tabs on what was happening with my grand-daughter."

"You could have asked," said Bella, sharply. "You could have swallowed your pride and started to try to forge some sort of relationship instead of hiding in your ivory tower crying about how badly the world has wronged you."

"Bella Swan," said Esme, a hint of sarcasm lacing through her words, "I sometimes forget that you're not that little seventeen year old mouse any more."

"Yeah? Me too."

"Well, I've not changed. I was stubborn then and I'm stubborn now. I can't believe," her voice started to crack, "that it's taken something as big as this to shake me out of myself." She fixed Bella with her green eyes and Bella's stomach lurched because theywere so like Edward's that it was uncanny. "I've not left it too late, have I?"

"No." Bella considered her response for a moment. "It's not too late. It will take time and effort on your part but it's not too late to be part of Renesmee's life."

"And you and Edward?"

"And our lives." Although the sceptical part of her brain appended the words _if you want_.

"How's Edward?" Esme changed the subject and Bella got the distinct impression that Esme was feeling as uncomfortable about her declaration as Bella had.

"Ummmm," said Bella, not quite sure how much to tell Esme. "Not himself." Esme surveyed her with shrewd eyes.

"Edward is like me," she explained, finally, leaning back onto the seat cushions and closing her eyes. "When things go wrong he looks inwardly rather than out." Bella nodded a reply, a lump in the throat at the thought of her beautiful Edward incapacitated by grief. "Has he retreated into himself?" Bella nodded. Esme sighed. "Don't give up on him, Bella." She opened her eyes again. "I don't know for sure but I'm guessing that he'll be blaming himself and his own actions for everything that has happened. Promise me this," Bella nodded before Esme could even ask the question, "no matter how uncommunicative he is, no matter how much he tries to drive you away to find a justification for his actions don't let him. Don't leave him. He needs you more than you could ever know." Bella wanted to ask how Esme could possibly know this but the fresh wave of grief that swam over the other woman's face and the way that her eyes strayed again to the untouched shrine of Carlisle's easy chair told her all that she needed to know.

She stayed with Esme a while longer, helping her get her sore, bruised body out of her clothes and into the shower then fresh pyjamas. She took the rubbish out, stacked the dishwasher and put on a load of washing. Finally she let herself out, locking the door behind her and gulping in great clean breaths of night air. Fishing her phone out of her bag she saw that she had two missed calls. Jacob and Alice. She put the phone away and steeled herself for a long night ahead.


	32. Chapter 32

RING. RING.

Before Bella could even get to the car her phone rang again. Alice.

"Hello?"

"Bella, it's me."

"Hi Alice," Bella shifted her phone to her other hand, putting her handbag onto the bonnet of the car and fishing in the depths for her car keys. "How are you?"

"Not good," said Alice, clearly not picking up on the cool tone of Bella's voice. "My waters have just broken."

"Oh." Bella found her car keys, clicked the button and opened the door.

"Can you hear me?" Alice was exasperated. "My waters have broken. I need you." Bella thought that she detected a hint of fear in the other woman's voice.

"So call Jasper," said Bella, throwing her bag onto the passenger seat. "Or Emmett." Once the words escaped she wondered whether they were a little cruel but the way that Alice had spoken to her and treated Emmett was still fresh in her mind.

"I have," whined Alice, "I only got answerphone and the baby's coming now."

"Fine." Bella got into the car and rested her head on the cool steering wheel for a moment, wondering when she had become such a doormat. "I'll be there in ten minutes."

"Thanks Bella, I really appreciate this."

In a small moment of rebellion Bella sat in the car for a moment before starting the engine, browsing work emails and sending off a few quick replies. As soon as the bluetooth connected to her mobile phone she scrolled thought the phone book and rang Jacob. After a few rings the answerphone kicked in.

"Jacob, it's Bella." She paused for a moment, unsure of what to say. "Ummm, just returning your call. I'll try to catch up with you later."

* * *

Bella stared in through the door of the maternity unit. With Alice barely dilated and settled in her white throne in a tastefully decorated suite Bella had heeded the advice of a slightly amused nurse and popped down to the cafeteria for a coffee. When she got back Emmett had arrived. He sat by Alice's bedside, stroking her hand, the picture of a doting father to be. Even though, thought Bella to herself, he wasn't the father. She stood watching through the narrow sliver of glass, not quite sure whether to stay or go. The scene was horribly intimate yet she couldn't look away.

The sound of double doors pushing open behind her made Bella jump slightly, guilty at being caught staring in from the outside. It was Jasper, striding down the hallway with purpose. His white blonde hair was slicked back from his face, his chin was covered with a couple of weeks of dense blonde growth and his determined feet were capped by dusty brown cowboy boots. A checked shirt tucked into faded jeans cinched by a belt with an elaborate buckle finished the ensemble. Bella hadn't seen him out of his city clothes or golf gear in years and found herself following him down the hallway with her eyes. It crossed her mind that only a few weeks previously herself and Alice had been discussing how cookie cutter Edward and Jasper were and laughing at their identikit khakis and polo shirts. When she had stopped noticing the little things that made them all individual? More to the point, what was it about living in the city that had homogenised their husbands and turned Bella into a barely functioning committee mom?

Jasper didn't acknowledge Bella as he reached the door of the maternity unit, simply pushed the door open with such force that his hands propelled the door over one hundred and eighty degrees until each door slammed against the wall behind. Alice and Emmett looked up, interrupted from their private moment by the noise. Emmett still held Alice's hand but as Jasper appeared in the doorway she snatched it back.

"Shit," said Bella quietly, pouring the last of her coffee down her throat in two hot, bitter mouthfuls before discarding it into a nearby trash can. She steeled herself as she entered the room but the atmosphere was surprisingly serene. Jasper had planted himself on the side of Alice's bed and Alice was literally crying into the side of his shirt, her arms thrown around his waist. Her words were incoherent, shot through as they were with tears and snot but Jasper's voice was low, his Southern accent soothing as he whispered sweet words of love and forgiveness into her hair. Bella turned towards Emmett, still folded into a plastic chair at the other side of the bed.

"Come on," said Bella, touching his arm. He looked up at here with sad, liquid eyes set into a face the colour and texture of rice paper. "Time to go." He nodded and got to his feet. Neither Alice nor Jasper noticed, wrapped up as they were in their own private world. Emmett followed Bella away from the room and down a number of identikit linoleum floored corridors and into the cool night air. Neither said a word.

"I'm sorry," said Bella, as they emerged into the cool evening air and a small jasmine scented garden adjacent to the car park. "I know that you really loved her." He simply nodded in response. He pulled the brim of his baseball cap lower over his face but Bella didn't miss the lump in his throat and the way that he tried to swallow it down to keep his feelings in check. "Will you be alright?" Again, he nodded. He even managed a weak smile but they both knew what a hollow gesture it was.

"She…." His voice cracked and he cleared his throat, visibly gathered himself and started again in a slightly stronger tone. "Alice was the first girl I kissed." He smiled, a strange combination of sweetness and sadness that made Bella's heart ache for him. "I was fourteen and she was a year younger. I was head over heels in love with her from that very first moment." Bella nodded gently. After a moment he continued. "I always thought that we would end up together." He laughed, a harsh bark. "I'm so stupid. I've spent the last decade and a half messing women around because I thought that they were just practice runs, filling time until Alice came round and realised that I was the one for her." He shrugged. "I guess that's never going to happen now."

"I'm sorry," said Bella. It didn't really feel like enough to offer to a man that had put his heart on the line and had it stomped on. "Is there anything that I can do?"

"No," he said forlornly. "You've stopped looking at me like something you dragged in on the sole of your shoe. That's enough for me."

"Sorry," said Bella, touching his arm, "I guess that I had you wrong all these years."

"Not really," he said, his laugh slightly warmer and more natural than his previous attempt. "I did try to seduce you and to get Edward not to marry you."

"Everybody makes mistakes," said Bella, keenly aware that Emmett knew all about her own mistakes. "You shouldn't spend your whole life paying for them."

"Amen to that," he said. "Look, Bella, I've never told you before but I think Edward made the right choice in marrying you." She raised her head a little too quickly, searching Emmett's face for a sign of sarcasm but finding none. "It might not have been the life that we dreamed about when we were teenagers but he's found everything that he ever wanted with you. You've helped rather than hindered him achieving his dreams. What I'm trying to say," he pulled the brim of his hat up then immediately pulled it back down again, a nervous little gesture, "is that you and Edward both bring your own thing to your marriage. Together you're stronger. I would hate for you guys to let this little bump in the road beat you after all you've been through."

In the car she mulled over the events of the evening. It had been hard to see Emmett so despondent. It also shed a painfully clear light on her relationship with Jacob. Although she had looked at Alice with disdain tonight the dreadful truth was that she was just as bad. She had deferred seeing Jacob again because she knew that it would be difficult. She had procrastinated about ending their fledgling relationship because she had liked having him in the wings. In truth, it was intoxicating having a hot young guy lusting after her. It was easy and fun and all of the things that being in a marriage for ten years was not. Was he in love with her? She couldn't be sure. He confessed that he was falling for her during the storm and whilst she had pushed away her cynical thoughts about his tears at the time when she looked at their encounter in the cold light of day she wondered if he had been laying it on a bit thick. Maybe she was just another one of numerous notches on the bedpost for him? Maybe their affair had been a way of Jacob assuring his contract with Edward met and to get the cash and media coverage that he felt his renovation work deserved?

There was only one way to find out. She started the car engine, flicked it into gear and started to make her way across the city to Jacob's workshop and bachelor pad.

* * *

The industrial area was fairly quiet in the evening with only a few shift working factories and warehouses still open. She found Jacob's place fairly easily. It was a small unit in a strip of half a dozen with workshops below and office space or small apartments above. She saw that there was a light on in the apartment directly above his workshop so she killed the car engine, picked up her bag and ascended the metal stairway before she lost her nerve.

She click clacked along a metal landing until she got to the right door. It was ajar, the smell of hearty, spicy food wafting out in tantalising waves.

"Jacob?" She called his name through the gap in the door. No answer.

"Jacob?" This time she moved closer to the gap, noting as she did so that music was playing inside. She rapped the door tentatively with her knuckles. The door was heavy, steel reinforced, so her knock barely made a noise but somehow it did move the door, pushing it open a couple of extra inches.

"Jacob?" Hearing what she thought was a voice she pushed the door wide open and stepped into his apartment. She passed down a small corridor with a door on either side. She could hear the sound of running water and a slightly muffled radio. It must be the bathroom and if Jacob was in the shower with music playing that explained why he hadn't heard her calling his name. Indecision racked her body but common sense told her that she would never have such a good opportunity to chat to Jacob so she carried on the few steps down the corridor to where the corridor opened up into a surprisingly spacious and modern kitchen diner. There was an earthenware dish in the modern oven which must be where the tantalising smell was coming from. The table was set for two, a single candle burning and two oversized wine glasses in place ready to take the contents of the bottle of red wine that was open and breathing.

What did this mean? Her heart started beating faster in her chest, beating louder and louder until it matched time with the insistent beat of the shower music. Was all of this for her benefit?


	33. Chapter 33

Bella's heels clacked erratically on the metal fire escape as she rushed away from the apartment. The shower had still been running when she left and she had pulled the door almost shut into what she hoped was a good approximation of where it had been when she arrived in an attempt to mask the fact that she had been there at all. Her first thought when she saw the little domestic scene was to question whether Jacob had taken her answering machine message as a firm offer to meet. Her second thought was one of complete horror. Did it matter? Why had she even come? Bella had made her choice. She had picked Edward. She had hitched her wagon to his and was going to hold on for dear life, no matter how bumpy the road became.

Finally the stark realisation hit her. It wasn't desire to let Jacob down gently that had motivated her to come. It was pride. Just once more she wanted to see the way that he looked at her. She wanted to see the way that his body reacted to hers. She wanted to fuel her own ego with his honey sweet words, the same words that would soothe her pain like a fine Scotch. She bit her bottom lip and pushed her hair angrily out of her eyes, feeling another wave of self loathing wash across her as she started her descent. This time, she told herself, was definitely the last.

"Shit!" She cried out involuntarily as her heel sunk, caught in the criss crossed metal of the stairs. Her foot, still travelling forward, left the pump behind and almost missed the step below. Only one hand on the metal bannister stopped her falling head over heel and a second wail escaped from her mouth as her wrist twisted cruelly, yanking almost out of the socket as her full weight pulled against her arm. Her body came to a stop and she pulled herself to her feet again using the handrail. She quickly did a mental run down of each part of her body and ascertained that she wasn't seriously hurt. Surreptitiously she looked around, checking that nobody had seen her inelegant plunge. The street below was empty, watery lamps piercing the soft blanket of the encroaching twilight. The steady whirr of industrial fans on the wall of a factory down the street and the hum of cars on the nearby freeway were the only sounds, soothing normality to her fragile state of mind. Breathing out a lungful of air that she hadn't realised that she was holding, Bella put her bag down on one of the steps and grabbed her pump with both hands to try to pull it out from where it was trapped. Her first yank didn't move the shoe at all. She planted her feet as firmly as she could with the imbalance in height, grabbed the shoe again with both hands and pulled.

"Bella?" As the familiar voice came from above her shoe finally came clear. Trying to grab back some dignity she dropped the freed pump onto the step below, quickly pushed her foot into it, then drew herself up to her full height, self consciously smoothing down her work dress as she did so.

"Jacob." She saw his feet first, shoes clad in flip flops. Her gaze carried on up his legs. She realised too late that all he was wearing was a towel, fluffy white cotton wrapped around his waist, slung scandalously low. She dragged her eyes from his torso, still smattered with drops of water that glistened in the fading light, to his face. He was clean shaven, his hair wet and messy. The musky smell of clean man enveloped them both.

"What are you doing here?" He crossed his arms over his chest, the look of amusement on his face when she first looked up at him quickly replaced by something more serious. Bella paused for a moment, frozen in time on that step, not sure whether a lie or the truth was the best policy. He looked amazing. Yet her attitude towards him had already changed. His chiselled body drew her gaze but she looked at his form with dispassion, the same look that she might have given a beautiful painting or statue. He was undeniably beautiful, his dark eyes serious and shiny in the fading light, his facial structure strong and regal, his lips full. Yet she could no more possess him than a Da Vinci. "Bella? Say something. Please." His voice was deep, puzzled. "You're starting to scare me."

"I came to see you," she said quietly, deciding on a whim that honesty was the best policy. "Then I decided it was a bad idea."

"So you saw…..?"

"I did," she said, dropping her eyes and smoothing the dress over her hips again compulsively.

"And you thought it was for you?" His eyes narrowed. Suddenly two distinct points in her head joined up with all of the brightness of a neon sign turning on. It hadn't been for her. She lifted her head again, meeting his eyes, moving her head in a single movement to indicate the statement true. "This is awkward," said Jacob, raking his hands through his wet hair and making it stand on end. "I liked you Bella, I really did." She nodded. "But when you moved back in with Edward and we had that disastrous date the writing was on the wall." She didn't dare move her head or breathe, lest she stop his stream of thought. "You knew that I was looking for something more meaningful and up in that little bubble of Cullen's cabin I think we both thought that something amazing could grow from those grubby beginnings." He shrugged his shoulders, moving his mouth into a thin lipped half smile that looked out of place on a face usually so open. "But back in real life with husbands and children and jobs it quickly became clear that it wouldn't work. To be honest," he added, "I've been waiting for that final text where you finish things for days now." Hot, embarrassed tears prickled her eyes and she took a deep breath, trying to keep them safely contained.

"Well here I am," she said, as flippantly as she could manage. "And now I'm going." She turned on her heel, determined to make an exit with her dignity intact. But Jacob moved as silently as he did swiftly and before she could move he was behind her, grabbing her arm gently but firmly and turning her back toward him. She stopped, suddenly aware that his body was inches from hers. He must have realised too because he took a step backwards up the fire escape to regain his personal space. He looked down at her, suddenly realising that he was towering over her by several heads. With an audible sigh he sat downheavily on the step, far enough away that she felt safe and low enough that her head was almost level with his. The towel almost fell open and she prudishly averted her eyes while he pulled it back across himself

"Don't leave like that," he said, once the towel was safely back in place, "not after everything that's happened."

"How should I leave then?" She snapped.

"With a skip in your step," he said. Suddenly the smile that she knew and adored came back, splitting the ominous thunder of his face like a ray of sunlight. "Look, you've got a husband who loves you, a healthy happy daughter and a great business. You've got more to be happy about than most." She thought to herself that Jacob wouldn't have mentioned the business if he had known that they had messed thing up so badly that she was going to have to tell the staff that they were pulling out of Greenburgh and cutting jobs to pay for their errors the very next day. Of course, that wasn't something that she was going to admit out loud. "What we had was fun," he continued, "but it wasn't real. Think of it like a weekend at a health spa or a yoga retreat. You indulged yourself for a while but now the focus is back on your real life."

"So," she said, changing the subject deliberately, suddenly desperate not to dwell on what had been or worse, what could have been. "Who's the girl?"

"The girl?" Jacob's grin got even wider and even in the twilight she could detect the flush on his cheeks. "It's all very new so I don't want to jinx it."

"Aha," said Bella with a knowing smile, urging him to continue.

"She's, um….." He ran his hands through his hair again, struggling to find the words. "She's not my usual type but she's feisty and opinionated and a lot of fun. It's early days," he said but then added, "but I think it might be the start of something special."

"That's great," she said, "I'm really happy for you." She was surprised to find that she meant it. Her stomach lurched with relief and a genuine smile suddenly bubbled to the surface. "Honestly," she said, "I'm happy for you both."

"You are so weird," he said, shaking his head, but his face and tone still held affection.

"I'd better go," said Bella.

"I guess you had," said Jacob with a slightly wistful smile. He got to his feet and stepped down until he was on the same step as her again. He put a hand on her waist and kissed her cheek. As he drew back she smiled at him. "I know we can't be friends," he said, "but I never wanted things to end badly."

"Me neither," Bella replied, her voice hoarse and barely audible. "I'll always think of you fondly."

"Me too," said Jacob. She wasn't sure if it was a trick of the light or whether a single tear glistened on Jacob's cheek but she would never know as he turned on his heel and padded back to his apartment without looking back. The finality was palpable, a strange thing that made her feel relieved yet melancholy at the same time. She stood for a moment, letting the hum of the factory and the whirr of the freeway wash over her, sounds of normality that smoothed over her raw edges like waves over pebbles. It was the rhythm of life, a throbbing, regular heartbeat that went on regardless. She felt small, suddenly exposed on that metal fire escape. Scooping up her bag she made her way carefully down the stairs and back into the safety of her car, tears that she had been holding in finally coursing down her cheeks.

TAP. TAP. A sharp rap on the window of the car window made Bella jump.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" A familiar, angry face stared in at her. Bella clicked the button to wind the window down, turning her head to face her accuser.

"Hello Jessica." She kept her voice calm and even. "How are you?"

"Jobless and pissed," she snarled. "And right this moment wondering what the hell you're doing outside Jacob's place."


	34. Chapter 34

"I could ask you the same question," said Bella. "Besides, I'm just leaving."

"Uh uh," said Jessica, the wild look of a fighting bull in her eyes as she put something heavy on the roof of Bella's Miate and pushed her head further through the car window. "Tell me what you were doing here."

"It doesn't matter," said Bella, putting her hand on the keys with the intention of turning on the ignition.

"It matters to me," said Jessica, grimly. She bashed her fist against the roof of the car. "I should have known there was something going on between you when he brought you those flowers. I'm so freaking stupid."

"There's nothing going on," said Bella. It was the truth, technically. Jessica eyed her with distrust.

"You really think you're the shit, don't you?" said Jessica, waving a finger theatrically in Bella's face. "First you bag Edward, then Emmett, then you get all greedy and grab Jacob for yourself too. You've always been a selfish bitch."

"We were friends once," said Bella. Jessica didn't answer. "Best friends. What happened?"

"You spent all your time with Edward, and became one half of a sad old middle aged couple before you were even eighteen. You didn't bother with little old me once you guys were tight."

"I'm sorry about that," said Bella. "Edward was my first love." She looked at Jessica with big eyes, begging her to understand. "Edward still is the love of my life. I really do regret now that we drifted apart."

"Too little too late," said Jessica. Her delivery was still sharp but the tone of her voice had softened a little.

"And you know nothing ever happened with Emmett, right?"

"Doesn't matter," Jessica replied, with a self indulgent little sniff and a toss of her hair. "He wanted you, that's what matters."

"You know I would have never betrayed you, right?"

"It doesn't matter!" Jessica raised her voice again, so suddenly that Bella flinched as the sound reverberated around the interior of the car. "Emmett wanted it to happen. He liked you better than me." Her voice dropped to a mutter. "Story of my pathetic fucking life."

"Jacob thought you could be the one." The words tumbled out of her mouth before she could stop them. Part of her felt sorry for the pathetic, self-loathing figure that was Jessica. Part of her wanted to soothe her, to provide some hope. The other part of her was keeping one eye on self preservation.

"Did he?" She had Jessica's attention now. The other woman stood up, finally taking her head out of Bella's personal space. Bella regarded her with interest, finally able to see her whole form. She looked different somehow. On the surface there was less make up and her hair was styled in gentle loose waves rather than corkscrew curls. Her clothing was casual and soft. Perhaps Bella was romanticising things however she did wonder whether Jacob's influence was good for Jessica. Maybe the love of a good man would soften out the rough edges?

"Yes," replied Bella. "He said that it was early days but there was someone in his life that could be quite special."

"Really?" Jessica's whole demeanour changed, hope softening her face from the hard lines of anger. She reached up to the roof and Bella flinched involuntarily, wondering for a moment whether she had a weapon up there. But when her hands came back into view she was holding a casserole dish with tinfoil stretched tight across the top. "I made him a casserole. I thought that I would surprise him."

"Surprise….?" Before Bella could voice her confusion a large SUV parked a few metres away from Bella. The front of the truck faced hers and the lights blinded herself and Jessica momentarily. The lights died and the door opened. A girl got out, chatting on her mobile phone. She looked curiously at Bella and Jessica for a moment then locked the car with a loud beep and started making her way up the fire escape that Bella had descended only moments before. The girl was tall with long dark hair tucked under a baseball cap, a vision of casual chic in cut off denim shorts that made her legs go on forever and a cute vest and sandals. Bella and Jessica watched wordlessly as she climbed the stairs, finishing her call seconds before rapping on Jacob's door. The door opened and the now dressed silhouette of Jacob could be seen for a moment in the warm light before they both disappeared inside.

"I made a fucking casserole!" Jessica screamed at the dish in front of her then lifted it high above her head only to immediately dash it against the pavement below. The dish shattered into dozens of pieces and food splodged all over the sidewalk. An anaemic blob of gravy splattered Bella's face through the open window. She wiped it off her face with a finger, licking automatically then grimacing at the weak, under seasoned liquid. For a terrible, uncharitable moment she thought that it was probably lucky for everybody that the meal had been wrecked. "I made a casserole!" Jessica screamed the words again, her fist balled into angry little knots by her side, her head raised to the sky and her mouth contorted into a scream tossed angrily into the air.

Bella had a feeling that it wouldn't be long before Jessica's rage turned towards a closer target so she took the opportunity to lock the car door, raise the window until it was only open a crack then put the keys in the ignition, ready to make an exit.

"You said he thought I was the one." Jessica's voice was accusing, her eyes wide and staring. She moved towards the car again but couldn't actually stick her head in the window again.

"He said somebody was," replied Bella carefully. "When I saw you outside I just assumed that it was you. I'm sorry, I made a mistake."

"I'm sorry," parroted Jessica, in a cruel parody of Bella's apology, her head bobbing slightly unnaturally as she used the movements to illustrate her point. "I made a mistake." Her voice rose again. "Your mistake is screwing up my life!"

"Umm, do you need a ride home?" asked Bella, deliberately changing the subject. She suddenly felt bone tired. She desperately wanted to leave but she couldn't see Jessica's car and even though Jessica was having the mother of all temper tantrums she couldn't leave another female alone in the industrial area at night.

"A ride?" Jessica screeched, her voice high enough that Bella imagined all of the dogs in the area raising their heads simultaneously. "Fuck off. I'd rather get the bus than get in the car with you. In fact, I'd rather cut a finger off than go anywhere with you." Bella figured that the response was pretty final. She closed the window, turned on the engine and the lights. The yellow pools of her headlights spilled sideways, illuminating Jessica for a moment. Bella almost felt sorry for the other woman, crying and screeching, a one woman soap opera on the quiet night time streets. But then Jessica turned her attention on Bella again, shaking her hand and shouting expletives that Bella couldn't hear but which she didn't have to be a champion lip reader to decipher.

She pulled away from the kerb gently, increasing her speed as Jessica crouched down and rose to her feet with her hands full of broken crockery and bad casserole. As the Miata sped up she slung handfuls at it's rear end, jumping in the air and fist pumping in delight as a handful of grey gloop landed squarely on the back windscreen. Bella scooshed the window with screenwash and turned on the wipers. As the worst casserole in the world was slowly wiped away Bella saw Jessica. Alone, dejected and crying in the street. A twinge of guilt took hold but she quickly wiped the feelings away. Despite everything that Jessica had done to drive a wedge between her and Edward and to bring down Cullen Industries Bella had known Jessica long enough that she had genuinely believed that there was still some good in her. Yet twice she had reached out to help Jessica and twice Jessica had refused. The woman was proud and angry and Bella finally realised that the bridges that had previously been built had not so much been burnt as completely obliterated.

* * *

Edward lay in bed. Whilst it was late and dark his brain was still working non-stop, circling over matters long since resolved and problems not yet arisen. He rolled over, pulling the comforter tight around himself, now stewing over the indecision of whether to go and get another glass of water or not. Bella had come along to say goodnight to him half an hour ago and gone straight to the master bedroom. Her steps had been heavy and instinct told him that there was something wrong with her. Yet the separate sleeping spaces had been part of their agreement and he was loathe to violate that. He wanted to speak to Bella, to tell her that he was sorry, to share with her the fact that he had booked to see a counsellor tomorrow, that he was committed to getting better.

The initial phone consultation had been hard. He had picked up the phone half a dozen times and dialled the number, putting the phone down before the call could connect. When he finally gained the courage to wait for someone to answer his palms felt sweaty yet the receptionist had been lovely and the initial chat that he had with the counsellor had been friendly and positive. For the first time in days he felt that there was a way out of his mental state that he could instigate, something that he could influence rather than the current position where he was waiting on prescription chemicals to take effect. Admittedly it was a small step but he was confident that it was the first of many. His phone chirped on the bedside table and he frowned, wondering who would be sending messages at this time of night. He picked the phone up, scrolled through the message and smiled.

"Bella?" He tapped gently on the bedroom door. It was slightly ajar, a habit from when Renesmee had been young and they had listened out for her during the night. No answer, although he was sure that he saw the rumpled pile that was the comforter move slightly. "Bella?" He said her name again, slightly louder. "I've got some news."

"Come in," she said. Her voice sounded hoarse. She sat up in bed and put on the bedside lamp. The comforter was tangled and twisted, something that Edward recognised as the way that Bella slept when something was troubling her.

"Look," he said, thrusting his phone in her face. "Alice had the baby. We're auntie and uncle to a little boy named Kai."

"That's great news," replied Bella, squinting at the little red squashed face swaddled in a primrose yellow blanket. Edward sensed that she either wasn't too excited about the event or that she already knew. "Sorry," he said, a little crestfallen. "I was excited. I wanted to share the news with you."

"No, I'm sorry," said Bella, looking at him straight on for the first time. She looked tired. Scratch that, he thought, she looked like she had been crying. "Alice's baby has kind of been eclipsed by what I'm going to have to do tomorrow." He looked at her, not quite sure what she meant.

"Which is?"

"It doesn't matter," said Bella, a little too brightly. "Nothing that you need to concern yourself with." He sensed that she was keeping something from him but there was something about her demeanour that stopped him from asking.

"Can't you sleep?" He asked.

"No," she said sheepishly. "I just keep tossing and turning."

"Want me to…..?" He lifted the comforter, pointing underneath, asking whether he could get into bed with her.

"Yeah," she said with a laugh, throwing her hands up into the air. "Why the hell not?" He wasn't going to ask again so in a moment he was under the comforter, snuggling up behind her in a spoon position that felt as new and fresh as it did old and comfortable.

"Bella," he whispered, "your feet are freezing!"

"I know," she giggled, pushing them against his legs. "I forgot how warm and snuggly you are."

"Oh, you ain't seen nothing yet," he quipped, snaking one arm around her waist and burying his face in the curve of her neck, inhaling the floral scent of her hair. He wanted to ask if he was back in her bed for every night or just tonight. He wanted to ask what the hell was going on at the company. But their reconciliation was new and fragile and he didn't want to risk shattering it. He held her tight, revelling in the way that their bodies fit together and how her breathing immediately started to become deeper and more even as she relaxed into his embrace. This felt right. This felt so right. He was going to do everything in his power to make this work.

Edward was just wondering whether he would lie awake all night just holding her when the alarm went off, indicating that it was 6AM and that he had enjoyed six hours of unbroken sleep, the most for weeks. He wondered if Bella had been awake before the alarm because she jumped out of bed and straight into the en-suite bathroom. Sitting upright he noticed the little pieces of cardboard on the bedside table. He smiled to himself, remembering that Bella liked the little cue cards whilst he remained a firm advocate of a good powerpoint presentation. Interested in what she was preparing for he picked up the cards and started reading.

"What the hell is this?" demanded Edward as Bella came out of the bathroom with a robe tightly wrapped around her, wet dark hair cascading over her shoulders. "What's going on at Greenburgh? Why the hell are we cutting jobs at the other two factories? Why didn't you tell me things had got so bad?"


	35. Chapter 35

"Why didn't you tell me things had got so bad?" Edward's face was angry, the cue cards that she had jotted some notes down on last night strewn across the comforter. How could she answer that question? "Answer me," said Edward, his voice calm on the surface but laced through with a dangerous electric undercurrent. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I couldn't," replied Bella, forlornly, sitting down heavily on the bed, her side profile to him. "You've not been well. I didn't want to burden you with all of this."

"With what?" She knew Edward. She knew that he wouldn't give up until she told him everything. So she did, from the financial predicament of the company, to her sale of the company assets to her confrontations with Jessica and Mike.

"So," he said finally, "it's a catch twenty two. We don't have enough money to keep Greenburgh going but if we pull out then we've already ploughed so much cash into it that we'll have to cut costs at the two other factories to keep them going?"

"That's the long and the short of it." Bella nodded. "I've scheduled a Management meeting this morning at 11AM. Once we've told them we'll let the factory staff break for lunch quarter of an hour early so that their managers can cascade the information."

"I want to be by your side," said Edward, firmly.

"Edward," Bella raised her head, twisting her body so that she was facing him. She put a hand on his knee. "You don't have to do this. Your priority has to be yourself. I've managed things this far and I'll manage them through to the end."

"My priority has to be us." He took her hand between both of his and squeezed, a comforting gesture that gave her more confidence than a million words. "I don't want you to manage things. I might not be ready to stand up in front of a room full of people and tell them that we've failed but by the same token I can't stand by and let you do it alone." He smiled. "I may only be good for shoulder rubs or silent support but I'll be there." Bella smiled sadly back at him, allowing herself a moment of self indulgence. She scooted back on the bed and put her head in his lap. He stroked her hair, a familiar gesture from days long gone. His clever fingers soothed her, bringing a momentary sense of calm that was tinged with melancholy as they traced her long tresses over her shoulders.

"Why," she asked, sadly, "has it taken losing everything for us to find each other again?"

"We've not lost everything," said Edward, a trace of the old confidence underpinning his bold words, "we still have each other and Renesmee." He shrugged his shoulders. "So, we lose this house and our earthly belongings. It doesn't matter. We don't even need half this crap anyway. I mean, we've got a wood fired pizza oven in the garden. Who the hell even needs one of those?" Bella laughed and Edward joined in but it petered out quickly, stifled by the impending reality of the day ahead.

* * *

"Edward, Bella," Sandy burst into the office only a few minutes after they arrived.. She looked a little manic, her eyes and movement reminiscent of a teenager filled with energy drinks. "We need to have a meeting, now."

"Did you not see the memo?" said Bella, slightly confused. "There's already a meeting at 11AM."

"No, no, no!" barked Sandy. "It has to be now."

"This afternoon?" offered Bella. "Edward and I really need to be prepared for this morning."

"Not this afternoon," bellowed Sandy. Bella stared at her. "Don't look at me like that," snapped the receptionist, putting one hand on her hip in a show of added sass. "I wouldn't be here unless my meeting absolutely had to take place before your meeting."

"Fine," said Bella, throwing her hands up in exasperation, "we'll be in the conference room in ten minutes." Sandy bustled off, almost running in her haste to spread the word.

Ten minutes later Edward and Bella entered the conference room. They were surprised to find the whole senior management team already assembled. The blinds were closed against the morning sun and the room was quiet and expectant, bathed in soft grey light.

"Please, take a seat," said Kevin, gesturing to two empty seats at the dark wood boardroom table.

"Okay," said Bella tentatively, not quite sure what was happening. Why were they being invited to a meeting in the company which they owned? She sat down in an empty chair, pleased that Edward was still beside her.

"It's no secret," began Kevin. "That the Greenburgh project has financially stretched this company. I understand from Sandy," he pointed at the receptionist who flashed a strange smile at Bella, "that despite your best efforts that you are still short of the cash required to get thing moving."

"That's right," said Bella quietly.

"How much?" Bella looked at Sandy again. The other woman nodded, urging her to share with the rest of the team what she had shared with Sandy only a few days before.

"At final count we're one hundred and twenty thousand dollars short," she said. Edward shifted uncomfortably in the seat beside her. She knew that he hated sharing what he considered dirty laundry with their employees. Bella, on the other hand, felt the load that she had been carrying lighten immediately as she said the words out loud, making them solid. She glanced around the room, searching the faces of the team. She saw concern and worry but not surprise. They must have known this was coming.

"Well, we think that we can help you," said Kevin.

"How?" The words burst out of Bella's mouth before she could stop them. "We've borrowed against the company and our house, we've sold assets and cashed in savings plans. I've explored every single avenue to raise those funds. How on earth do you think that you can help?"

"We've got the cash," butted in Sandy, impatiently.

"I don't understand." Edward frowned beside her. "What do you mean?"

"Well," said Kevin, glaring at Sandy who had obviously let the cat out of the bag too soon, "all of us in this room today believe. We believe in Cullen Industries. We believe in you two. But most of all we believe that the Greenburgh project is the right thing to do, both for the company and the local community. We're willing to lend our own savings to the company to make sure that this happens."

"But…." Bella's eyes started to mist over, a strange feeling of fear and relief washing over her like a wave of nausea.

"We would charge interest of course," said Kevin, quickly.

"But we can't take your money," said Bella, shaking her head.

"Why not?" said Sandy, sharply. "You've put everything in. Why can't we all put some of our savings into a project that we believe in?"

"I've got a better idea," said Edward, quietly. Every head in the room turned to stare at him. He gulped, putting a finger inside the collar of his shirt as if trying to get some breathing space. Bella hoped that he was feeling alright. She put her hand under the table, grasping into space until she found his hand where it was clamped to the arm of his chair. It felt cold and clammy but as he let go of the arm and grasped her hand back his grip was strong. "Instead of giving your money to the company as a loan why don't you invest it? We could give you, say, 10% of the shareholding. You'll benefit from dividends when they are declared and you'll all get to sit at the table when the big decisions are made."

Bella turned to look at him. The company was precious to him, sometimes she had resented it, thought that he loved the business more than her. But as she examined his face she saw that he was serious. She squeezed his hand tighter under the table, trying to tell him silently that she approved.

"Edward?" It was Kevin's turn to look confused. "That sum of money is worth nowhere near 10% of the company. In fact," he paused for a moment, biting his lip as he did the math in his head, "that amount of money would buy less than 5% of the company at the current market capitalisation."

"That doesn't matter," said Bella, still looking at Edward. He smiled at her. Encouraged, she turned around to address the room. "You can never know how unbelievably grateful we are for what you guys have done. We want to make sure that your loyalty and cash invested is rewarded. Take 10% of the company and who knows, maybe we'll see that the employee shareholding is increased over time."

"We'll need to have a meeting after this to check that everybody agrees." He looked around the room where everybody was smiling and nodding. "Although," he said, a big grin creeping over his own face, "I don't think that I am speaking out of turn by saying that we're all on board."

* * *

"Well," said Bella once the rest of the team had left the room, leaving them alone at the huge table. "I didn't expect that to happen."

"Me neither," said Edward. "Although I'm glad that it did."

"Edward," she swivelled her chair towards his, pulling the arm of his chair so that it too angled ninety degrees so that they were facing each other. She reached her hand out and touched the side of his face. "Are you sure you're not upset about giving away part of the shareholding?"

"No," he replied. She stared into his green eyes, felt their sincerity. "I thought that I was going to lose everything. Compared to that this is a great deal." He put his hand on top of hers, and Bella nuzzled the chin that was clean shaven for the first time in days against her soft hand. "For all of us."

"You know this is just the start, right?"

"I know," replied Edward. "The last few weeks have finally taught me what's important in life." He pulled her hand round to his mouth and kissed it gently, sweetly. "We need to focus on people, not things." She nodded, a lump forming in her throat. "And would you be mad," he grimaced, slightly, tense as he readied himself to her response to his next question, "if I said that I wanted to be closer to my mother?"

"No, of course not! She might be a bitch but she's still your mother and now she's all alone. Plus," she said, a little guiltily, "I've been thinking about moving a bit closer to Charlie too."

"The city has not been good to us," mused Edward.

"It's toxic," agreed Bella. "The people, the pollution…."

"It's not just the city," said Edward quietly. "It's me and you. We've gone so far wrong. Can we get things back on track?"

"Well," said Bella, "we're talking to each other honestly which is a start. As long as we keep the lines of communication open we've got as good a shot as anybody else."

"Better," said Edward, smiling. He got to his feet and pulled her up with him, enveloping her in his strong arms so that she could feel the beat of his heart through the thin material of his shirt. "We've made it through ten years so far. One teen pregnancy, one failed company, two dead parents, a bad case of industrial sabotage and a company that's seen its star rise fast then sink quicker than a man with concrete boots. With that under our belts the next thirty years should be plain sailing."

"Oh Edward," she said, tears building in her eyes at the same time a laugh slipped out. "I do love you."

"I love you too."


	36. Chapter 36

4 Months later

"There's so many people here," said Edward, poking his head out of a flap in the draughty marquee. He pulled his head back in quickly, his breath still coming from his mouth in warm plumes, a visible sign of the cold fall day. He scratched his head comically, a caricature of confusion. "I don't remember booking a funfair?"

"We didn't," replied Bella, "the people of Greenburgh did. Somebody decided that today was as important for the town as the summer fair and all that stuff magically appeared."

"Wow." Edward stuck his head out of the flap again, keeping it out for longer this time. His words were muffled through the canvas as he reported on what "There's a hot dog stand, a carousel, some ponies…."

Bella zoned out and turned her attention back to her little cue cards. Edward had improved dramatically since his breakdown with the counselling, the anti-depressants and their lifestyle changes slowly taking effect. Recovery, however, was a long slow process so they had made the decision that they would stand up on the makeshift stage together but that Bella would deliver the speech.

"Bella!" Edward was excited now. "The concrete mixer has arrived!" Cue cards forgotten Bella stuck her head out of the flap just below Edward's in time to see a huge red truck with a slowly rotating load of concrete on the back.

"It's big," breathed Bella.

"It is," said Edward. They both observed silently as it reversed carefully across the cleared ground of what would be their factory. Huge dark slashes in the ground marked the holes that had been dug for the foundations. The concrete would fill them up, make them new and start to provide a base for the future. With the truck in location a man in a hard hat and a high visibility vest got out and started aiming the spout toward the newly dug foundations. "This is it," he said, "this is what everyone has come to see." He turned to Bella, a new found angst in his eyes. "I'm scared Bella," he said. "There are people out there just waiting for us to fail."

"Don't worry," replied Bella. She too had seen Jessica and Mike as well as a few ex business partners in the crowd. Instinctively she grabbed his hand and squeezed it tight. "I've got enough determination today for both of us."

* * *

Bella stood nervously at the side of the makeshift stage as Eric, a DJ from the local radio station got the crowd worked up. It was cold and she was wrapped up in a smart winter coat but she clearly couldn't bear to let go of her precious little cue cards and her fingers were starting to turn blue. Frowning, Edward took the cards out of her hand, slipping them into the pocket of her coat. He took her hands in his, rubbing them to try to get some heat back into them. She rewarded him with a smile. As the DJ segued from general chat to a preamble about Cullen Industries and the benefits that the new plant would bring to the local area Edward put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her close. She seemed grateful for the gesture, resting her head against his shoulder in a moment of quiet contemplation before the crowd burst into applause, indicating their turn to get onto the stage.

"Ladies and gentleman," she began, clear and confident. Edward's heart almost burst with pride as he looked out over the crowd and saw her commanding the attention of all. When they had been waiting the crowd had seemed like a seething blur of colour but as it stopped to listen to Bella he could finally make out detail. Renesmee was near the front, sitting on Charlie's shoulders. Charlie's friend Sue was by his side, smiling, one hand hovering near Renesmee's leg to make sure she didn't overbalance and fall over in excitement. Esme was a few rows back from the front with a friend. Since Carlisle had passed away the old bats she had lunch with had actually rallied and her social life was better than ever between the tennis club and various charitable causes. He could see Alice standing beside Esme and searched the crowd for Jasper, finally finding him at the back of the field, well beyond where the crowd petered out, walking back and forward with baby Kai in his arms. Bella had filled him in on what had happened in bits and pieces over the last couple of months and he was pleased to see them happy.

He scanned the crowd again, finally finding Emmett who was looking thoughtfully at Edward rather than at the show on the stage. He lifted his hand, waving it in greeting. Emmett smiled back, nodding his head to indicate that he approved of what they had done. Rose stood in front of him and he had his arms tight around her. The difference in their on again, off again relationship had been stark since Alice had finally dashed all hopes that they would ever be together. Rose had somehow always been aware that Emmett wasn't present with her, that he wouldn't or couldn't give one hundred percent to their relationship. Without the spectre of Alice their relationship had evened out, the highs of lust filled evenings and the lows of Rose's jealous tantrums evened out until a loving, mutually respectful relationship was nurtured. As Bella had commented, Rose was still a bitch, but with Emmett finally fully invested in things the volatility that had made her difficult to be around in the past had all but disappeared.

In a flash Bella's speech was over and the crowd cheered. The fairground rides burst back into life and the crowd started to move again. Bella stepped off the makeshift stage and although her chin was tilted strongly as he pulled her close he could feel her shaking.

* * *

Edward shut the bedroom door behind him, sitting down on the bed and pulling his laptop out from where he had stashed it under the bed. He knew he was alone, Charlie still had Renesmee at the funfair and their house warming party wasn't due to start until this evening. Still, he felt a flash of guilt as he turned the laptop on. It seemed to take forever to boot up but finally he was online, clicking on his new favourite website.

The brunette was there, bored and beautiful, dressed in a corset that pushed her breasts up, matching panties and thigh high hold-ups. She lay on the edge of a bed inspecting her nails. Suddenly aware that she had a customer she sat up, smiling into the webcam.

"Good evening," her accent was vaguely Eastern European. "What can I do for you tonight?"

"I want to see you standing up," he said. "I want to inspect you from every angle."

"Of course," she purred. She got to her feet and slowly turned three hundred and sixty degrees so that he could inspect every inch of her beautiful body. The full breasts that were pushed up so high you could almost see the tops of her nipples. The creamy expanse of thigh between the tops of the hold ups and the scalloped, lacy edging of the barely there panties. The curve of her bottom and her hips, the way that her long thick hair cascaded down her back. Finally the inspection was over and she was back facing the camera. She played with the lacy edging her panties, giving him tantalising little glimpses into the contents. His cock was a hard as a rock, knowing that he had paid for this and that she would do anything that he asked.

"Bend over," he said, his voice hoarse, mouth suddenly try. "Take your panties off slowly."

She did as he said, bending over so that her bottom virtually filled the screen, pulling down her panties so slowly that when her pussy finally appeared a gasp of pleasure escaped from his mouth. She hopped up onto the edge of the bed and onto all fours, spreading her cheeks with her hands so that he could see everything. A hand snaked back between her legs, rubbing her clit, pleasuring herself in front of him. He reached into his boxer shorts and finally touched himself, his hand pistoning up and down his cock as he watched her. She turned around again, lying on her back, legs spread for the camera. A second hand joined the party and she slipped a finger inside herself as the other continued to work her clit.

Suddenly it was too much knowing that she was just down the corridor. He got to his feet, pushed his boxer shorts down to the floor and ran down the corridor with his erection bobbing comically until he was in the guest bedroom with her.

"Bella!" As he entered the room the sight of her on the bed with her legs spread was even better than the view from the webcam.

"Sir," she said, still keeping up the Eastern European accent, "this is highly irregular."

"Fuck irregular," he said. "I need you now."

* * *

"Guys?" Edward's voice rose above the low level buzz of voices in the large kitchen diner. When only a few people turned their attention to him he tapped the side of his wine glass with a spoon until everybody in the room turned to face him. Bella was surprised, she hadn't been aware that Edward was going to make a speech. She set down her glass of white wine on a side table and watched him.

"Guys," he smiled at the crowd of assembled friends and family. "Thank you all so much for coming to our little house warming party."

"Little?" Emmett chimed in. "You've got a freaking caterer!"

"Thanks Emmett," replied Edward, smiling and looking at ease in a white casual shirt unbuttoned at the neck and rolled up at the sleeves. "I'm sure that everybody in this room is happy to eat something a little bit more sophisticated than chips and nuts." The crowd laughed. "As you all know both Cullen Industries along with Bella and myself have had a few difficult months." Nobody in the room made a sound. "The concrete pouring ceremony today marked the start of a new era for Cullen Industries whilst the purchase of this new smaller home, halfway between Forks and Greenburgh means a return to our roots for us. We thought that we were reaching for the stars but all that we gained were material goods and enemies. Having to give up those material goods has actually been one of the best things that has happened to us.. We can now see what is important. Friends, family, loyalty and love; a lot of things that I feel in this room tonight." A murmur of appreciation went around the room, as infectious as a Mexican wave. "Have a great night."

"Toast," shouted Esme in a surprisingly firm voice. Everybody in the room obeyed, lifting their glass as she declared the toast, "to Edward, Bella and Renesmee."

As the crowd started chatting again Edward walked over to Bella and took her in his arms.

"I meant every word," he whispered in her ear. "We're better together and we're going to make our joint CEO role work no matter what."

"You two," snorted Renesmee, standing off to the side in a pink party dress, hands on her hips. "Get a room." Bella raised an eyebrow at Edward, she wasn't quite sure whether Renesmee knew what the phrase meant, another symbol of the strange mix of things that made up a modern tween.

"Come here," said Edward. Renesmee did as he asked, worming herself in between them and bear hugging first Edward then Bella.

Bella held her daughter, breathing in the scent of floral shampoo from her blonde curls. Edward moved in behind her, pressing himself against her back and putting his arms around them both. It was in that moment, surrounded by friends and family and love that she finally felt genuine happiness. Edward liked to joke that it had been seeing Bella fall from the pedestal that he had put her on that had kick started their sex life again however Bella knew that it was more than that. It had taken nearly losing everything for them to unite again as a team, as a family. They had lost a lot of those material things but now that she knew what was most important in life she was never going to let it go.

* * *

 **Authors Note:**

Well, it's been a rollercoaster ride. 100,000 words, thirty six chapters, 9 months of my life and my first piece of full length fan fiction is finally finished. Would I change anything? Of course I would! A story is a living, breathing thing and if I wasn't publishing this on a weekly basis I would probably have written and rewritten it indefinitely until I got it perfect.

The difficulty with fan fiction is that everybody already has a stake in the characters and the story. I've annoyed Edward fans by pairing Bella with Jacob. I've annoyed Jacob fans by having her stay with Edward. In short, everybody has an opinion on the "perfect" character and any deviation from that is criticised. If every author on FF listened to that criticism then the fiction on this site would largely be generic and samey rather than experimental and diverse.

Thanks firstly to Alison JG for solid beta work. Thanks also to AliciaW68 for trying to warn me that my ideas are going to generate abuse! Both are my first point of call for bouncing ideas off. Thanks to the guys who have been with me since the start, reading and reviewing. I had intended to reply to all reviews however I gave up about halfway through when I took the conscious decision to ignore rude/ abusive comments and concentrate on the story.

I'm taking a break from posting for a while but I'm already working on another, very different, piece so if you like what you have read put me on alert and see what you think. I'm also on TWCS under the same name and I'm going to debut some original work on there in the near future.

LadyLetters


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